Katsuya's Adventures in Wonderland
by Reizbar-Ookami
Summary: Katsuya follows a rabbit-like Ryou through a man hole to find himself faced with his friends--as strange creatures! With Kaiba as the King of Hearts, if he doesn't behave, it's off with his head! And to add insult to injury, he's stuck wearing a dress!
1. Through the Rabbit Hole

Edit (08-13-10): I changed Jounouchi's accent. **:**/ Just FYI.

**Katsuya's Adventures in Wonderland**

_**Through the Rabbit Hole**_

Jounouchi couldn't help a smile as he leaned back and rested his hands behind his head. He loved days like this—lazy summer days where he didn't have to worry about homework, or his father, or his friends. It wasn't that his friends were a pain in the ass or anything; he just liked having some time to himself sometimes, and he hadn't gotten a lot of it lately. He'd really enjoy this time right now…

He yipped as he felt someone trip over him and jerked upward. "Ouch! What the hell, man!"

"Oh, dear, I'm so sorry!"

Wait, he recognized that timid British voice. Looking upward, he found his dear friend Ryou scrambling to his feet. "Ryou! What's wrong-!" He frowned in confusion when he saw a pair of white bunny ears sticking up out of his hair, then shook it off; he'd been known to hallucinate when he was hungry before. "Whatever. Hey, wait!" Seeing his friend running off in a panic, he had to get up and go after him to see what was wrong. "Ryou! Wait a second!"

"I'm so sorry Jounouchi but I can't you see I'm late! I'm _late!_ For a very important date!" Ryou exclaimed, looking over his shoulder at him, before he looked back at where he was going.

Still, he wanted to be able to help his friend, so he followed him. He frowned in concern as he found his albino friend stop in front of a man hole in the middle of the park's sidewalk, then gasped when he realized that he was actually going to go through it. "Ryou! Don't do that! Do ya know what kind of gross stuff is in there!"

However, Ryou didn't seem to heed him, and instead opened the manhole and _jumped right in._ "Sorry, Jounouchi!"

"Aw, fuck!" Hesitating at the manhole, Jounouchi weighed his options. He could either forget about Ryou and leave the possibility of him getting hurt down there, or he could jump in and try to convince him to come back out. ….There really was no choice was there? "Aw, fuck."

Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes, then stepped off the edge and into the manhole. He only fell for a few seconds before everything went dark.

.-.-.-.-.-.

His head _ached like a bitch!_

Groaning, Jounouchi sat up, rubbing his head. "Ouch…" He frowned in confusion as he felt something on his head, then took it off and looked at it in confusion. "A headband? I wasn't wearing a headband when I jumped in." He was about to toss the headband away when he looked down. "OHMYGOD! I wasn't wearing a dress either! Who the hell changed me?"

It was a baby blue dress with a white apron on the front. Underneath the skirt was a… petticoat, of sorts, that made the dress poof out slightly from his body, sort of like a hoop skirt but not as drastic. The lace of the petticoat showed beneath in torn ruffles, looking strange but still rather cute. The sleeves went down nearly to his elbows and ended in white cuffs with an olive green stripe, just like the one that bordered his apron. At his shoulders and the top of the apron were more of the torn ruffles, which looked a little weird in his opinion, but still made the dress look cute.

It was a very nice dress. BUT WHY WAS HE WEARING IT?

Standing up, he was glad to see he still wore his blue and white converse—but they'd probably only been left on because they matched the dress. He looked around for his clothes, but found nothing—except Ryou running off deeper into the tunnel. He began running after him, waving frantically. "Ryou! Ryou, hey! Wait up a second!"

He growled in frustration when the smaller boy refused to acknowledge him and began running harder, determined to grab him and get back out. He wouldn't realize until later that they obviously weren't in the city's water system.

Jounouchi blinked in surprise as he suddenly came to a dead end, with only one large door. "…Weird. Why have a door _here?_" He supposed that the designers just really wanted to piss him off. Opening the door hurriedly, he began running down the tunnel again, only to come to another, smaller door a few minutes later. "What the hell?"

After the forth door, (each door growing smaller and smaller as he progressed), he was starting to get a little frightened, as he'd lost sight of Ryou, and he didn't know where he was. He kept telling himself that he'd just catch up to his friend and then they could both go back, but he had a sinking feeling that that just wasn't going to happen. He kept a brave face, however, and continued onward, pleased that he'd been jogging for five minutes without finding another door.

He really should learn to keep his mouth shut.

"Oh, shit!"

Jounouchi scowled at the small door, placing his hands on his hips and looking very much like an annoyed teenage girl. He compared the width of the door to the width of his shoulders. If he went with his arms first, he might be able to squeeze through. Ryou would have had no problem, so he'd _have_ to get through to be able to get to him and then leave. Sighing, he pushed the door open, then began trying to wriggle his way through.

He'd just gotten his waist through when he looked up just to see his friend disappear through another door, a tiny one, one he'd _never_ have _any_ hope of getting through. But he had to try.

He squealed as the door he was going through seemed to shrink around his waist, trapping him because his hips were too wide to get through now. "Nyeeeek!"

"Oh, _dear._ That door has been doing that a lot lately!"

Jounouchi froze, eyes wide, before he looked around wildly for the source of the voice. "Who said that?"

"Well _I_ did, silly. Down here!" He looked downward. "Yoohoo!"

The… doorknob… was talking to him. And it sounded like Anzu's voice. Though he supposed that really shouldn't come as a surprise now, because he'd been running down a tunnel for about twenty minutes, came to five doors that kept getting smaller, had just been trapped by a shrinking door, and his friend with bunny ears had just disappeared through an even tinier door.

The doorknob sounding like his friend shouldn't have come as a surprise either, really. It was a latch door, not a knob as he'd first thought, designed to be a ballet dancer; her hands were the latch that could come down and go up, and a key could go through her… her… oh, that was awkward.

He decided he'd rather be safe than sorry. Brows furrowing together in confusion, he hesitantly questioned, "Anzu…?"

The door latch blinked at him in surprise. "How did you know my name? Do I know you from somewhere?" She frowned. "Have you come through here before?"

"…I have a friend with the same name, I guess, and you both sound alike," he answered quickly, not wanting to deal with anymore confusion than he had to.

Anzu-Door-Latch seemed content with this answer. "I see. Well, I suppose I can help you get out of your problem. You seem nice enough."

"Oh, thanks! If you help me, I'll love you forever!" Jounouchi exclaimed gratefully, still squirming a bit.

She smiled brightly. "See that table? There should be a bottle on it. Read what it says."

The blond blinked for a moment, then reached out to grab the tiny bottle and read the label. "It says… 'Drink Me.'"

"Then you should do what it says, right?" Anzu-Door-Latch stated, tilting her bronze head.

Jounouchi was a little nervous to be drinking something when he didn't know what it was—especially when he was talking to a door latch and his friend had bunny ears—but drank it nonetheless. He squeaked as he began to shrink, dropping the bottle in surprise, then looked around. He hoped there was nothing on the table that he needed, because it would take probably another fifteen minutes to get up there.

Going over to the door latch, he clasped his hands together and gave her (it? Her? What was it?) the biggest, sweetest puppy eyes he could manage—which, he'd been told, was pretty big and pretty sweet. "Anzu? Is it okay if I go through your door?"

She frowned thoughtfully. "Well, the key _is_ on the table…" He felt about ready to cry in frustration. "…But I guess I could show you a trick!" she added quickly.

"Really?" He made sure to sound sweet and helpless. He'd learned from being on the streets that people reacted more favorable to that then a smart ass street punk.

Anzu smiled brightly. "Sure! Okay, just a second." Jounouchi watched in confusion as her face twisted into an expression of absolute concentration. A few seconds later, they were rewarded with a _CLICK_ and she gave him a triumphant smile. "Ha! I've been practicing that for years!"

"Ah. That's really cool, Anzu." And it was. Creepy, and kind of gross if he thought about it too long, but cool. "So… may I go through?" he asked again, tilting his head.

She nodded. "Yes. Just make sure to lock me when you get on the other side, though, okay? Locking and unlocking takes a lot out of me," she sighed, letting her head dip a little.

"Okay, I will. Thanks, Anzu!" Stepping through the door, he made sure to lock Anzu back up before he turned back to see where he was now.

…None of _this_ should have come as a surprise, either, frankly; all of these fluffy trees, and mushrooms, and grass—was that a caterpillar? Why was it as big as a train?

Groaning, Jounouchi grabbed his hair and looked around. How was he supposed to find Ryou in all of _this?_

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

So, I saw this picture, and that's how this story popped into my head. **:**D Just take out the spaces and you'll be able to see it.

http : / i53 . photobucket . com / albums / g42 / chubby _ wolf _ 13 / Yu-Gi-Oh / f670 . jpg

Also! This story is mostly rated the way it is because of sweet little Katsuya's _potty mouth_ and suggestive themes_._ There may be some KaiJou action later… I'm not sure… There could be, but we'll just have to see, won't we?


	2. The Cats and the Hare

Author's Note: Halfway through this chapter, I will be switching from calling Jounouchi to Katsuya. You should be able to see why, but if not, just review me and I'll explain it to you.

Also, I excluded a lot of the story, because I hate it and I want to get to the KaiJou. Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dum make me want to saw my own head off, the flowers were so rude I wanted to club my TV, and the other parts were just annoyances. The good part is when Alice meets the Queen. Well, I'm skipping to the good part—where Jounouchi meets the King. **:**D

This story will probably be finished sooner than _Mythaven._ I don't even expect this story to reach double-digit chapters. I may come back and revise it later, but it's hard to tell right now.

**Katsuya's Adventures in Wonderland**

_**The Cats and the Hare**_

"This is the most fucked up thing I've ever gone through. …AND THAT'S SAYING SOMETHING!"

After struggling through the forest of grass and fluffy trees for over an hour, Jounouchi had come to a footpath, where he was now sitting on a small rock, about ready to cry. It was one thing to save world with friends by your side; it was a whole different thing to be lost in an unknown world all by yourself, looking for someone you were sure you were never going to find.

If there was one thing he definitely wasn't meant to be, he decided, it would be alone.

"Are you okay, little girl?"

Despite the fact that he was in no position to get belligerent, Jounouchi stood up angrily and turned. "Who are you calling a girl-!" He cut himself off as he was met with a pair of wide, frightened violet eyes, then took a step back and crossed his arms, looking down at his feet. "…Sorry. I'm just not in a good mood."

The cat-eared boy that looked suspiciously like Yuugi tilted his head, frowning. "I'm sorry you're not in a good mood. My name is Yuugi. What's yours?"

'_Your name would be Yuugi,'_ the blond thought bitterly, then looked up at him. "…Jounouchi Katsuya."

"Katsuya's a pretty name," Yuugi commented, then smiled brightly. "Is there anything I can help you with, Katsuya?"

Jounouchi blinked at him for a moment, stunned. Yuugi—the real Yuugi—had always been nothing but polite, always calling him 'Jounouchi-kun.' This Yuugi, though still very kind, wasn't using honorifics at all, and he hadn't even asked to be able to call him by his given name. He… really didn't know what to think about this feline Yuugi.

The smaller boy let out a nervous 'meep' and quickly ducked behind him for no apparent reason. "If he asks about me I'm not here!"

"Huh?" The blond started to look back at him, confused, but then his attention was caught by another feline person, and he was alarmed to find it was his friend's other, darker half. "Ah…"

The Yami look-alike frowned and looked around for a moment, then turned his intense crimson gaze on him. "Have you seen my aibou? He looks like me, except… softer. Nicer."

"Ah…" Remembering Yuugi's frantic plea, Jounouchi shook his head. "No. Haven't seen him."

Yami sighed and seemed to slump in defeat, ears wilting. "I always seem to lose him in the garden…" He paused, then frowned and stood up straight again, raising an eyebrow. "I've never seen _you_ in Wonderland before."

Well, at least he had a name for this place. The blond tilted his head. "Uh, no. I'm new here, and I'm trying to find my friend."

Yami narrowed his eyes skeptically. "…And what is your name?"

"Jounouchi Katsuya," he answered, and he decided that all of this introducing and stuff was getting very old very quickly. He _knew_ these people; they just didn't know him.

"Katsuya." The feline tilted his head casually, pondering the name for a few minutes, before nodding. "It suits you. It's girly, just like you."

"Who are you calling girly, you prick?" the taller male exclaimed defensively, clenching his hands into fists and spreading his legs slightly in a battle stance, skirt be damned. "I'll rip your ears clean out of your head!"

Yami smiled nervously and lifted his hands. "Hey, just calm down. It was only a thought—"

"You call me girly one more time and I'll take your tail, too!" Jounouchi added as an afterthought. "You pussy!" Ooh, a backhanded compliment, burn.

The feline looked offended by this. "Katsuya, just calm down. I—"

Yami hadn't asked to use his given name, either. _'What's with all these rude people? It's because they're cats, isn't it!'_ He tried to ignore the fact that he wouldn't have truly minded if they'd been his real friends, because they weren't. They were figments of his imagination that he was sure he'd get rid of if he only ate something. "Do you know where I can find a white rabbit?"

Whatever the feline had been expecting, that had not been it. Yami blinked at him a moment, then nodded, rubbing the back of his head. "Um, yes. The March Hare and the Mad Hatter are celebrating his unbirthday."

"His… unbirthday. Right. Do you know where I can find them?" he asked, tilting his head.

At this, the feline acquired a small, sly smile and crossed his arms. "Well, I suppose I could tell you." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "He went that way."

Despite common belief, Jounouchi wasn't stupid. Narrowing his eyes at the cat, he placed his hands on his hips and asked, "Who did?" Just to make sure they were talking about the same rabbit; a rabbit was different from a hare, after all.

"The white rabbit," Yami replied, grinning a grin that was both mischievous and condescending.

He had to admit, he was surprised the other cat had told him the truth. "He did?"

The man looked surprised, ears twitching slightly. "He did what?"

"Went that way?" Jounouchi asked, tilting his head.

"Who did?"

Oh, now it was clear. The cat just wanted to mess with his head. "The white rabbit!"

Yami raised an eyebrow. "What rabbit?"

Jounouchi felt ready to tear his hair out—or the cat's, he wasn't picky. "But you just said—Ah, fuck it! I'm going this way!" he exclaimed angrily, turning to storm in the opposite direction.

Finally deciding to make his presence known, Yuugi caught his arm and gave it a small tug. "I'll take you to the March Hare's house, Katsuya!"

"Aibou!" To say Yami was surprised and a little embarrassed would be an understatement. "I didn't know you were—"

"If you think you're coming with us, you've got another thing coming to you, pussy!" the blond warned, shaking his fist. "You pissed me off royal and I don't think I'm cooled off enough to not gut you!"

Even in this world, the man still liked to see how far he could push, as he crossed his arms and stood up straight to give him a condescending look. "I don't think you'd be able to stop me if I really wanted to go."

Letting out a roar of fury, the blond picked up a rock and threw it at him. Yami decided that the rock had come a little too close for comfort and took that time to disappear, but not without one last, smug, Cheshire grin.

It was then that Jounouchi realized— "Oh my fucking _GAWD._ I'm Alice in freaking WONDERLAND!"

Yuugi frowned in confusion. "I thought you said your name was Katsuya…"

Trying not to lose his temper, because hurting his one companion's feeling would be decidedly bad, he sighed. "I did. I just remembered something. So, where's the March Hare live?"

"Oh! This way!" the smaller boy exclaimed, grabbing his hand and leading him at a run. "Come on! Before Yami decides to follow us!"

Jounouchi frowned. "Why would that be bad?" He turned his head slightly in confusion as he heard a loud 'click,' but when he saw nothing, he turned his attention back to the other boy.

The feline let out a whine of frustration. "He keeps _hitting_ on me!"

The blond couldn't help a soft, sad laugh at that. The Yuugi in the real world would have _killed_ to have Yami flirt with him, and this one was complaining. It figured. His hallucinations were so cruel.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Yami poked his head into the throne room and glanced around furtively, then took off toward the thrones—one larger, the other two smaller, but the one to the left was still slightly larger than the other. He went for the smallest throne, catching the person sitting in it and beginning one of his best attacks.

Mokuba let out a shriek before he began to laugh, trying to dodge off of the seat as he batted at the feline-man's hands. "Yami! What the hell! Knock it off!"

"Tch, fine." Standing, he brushed himself off, then turned his attention to the boy's older brother. "I have some news you might be interested in."

"Oh, thank God." Seto stood quickly. "If someone else comes in and complains about how I run Wonderland, I swear I'm going to turn into my step-father and shout 'off with his head!'"

Yami chuckled softly but followed him out. "I'm surprised. You're usually much more patient with people."

The brunet turned toward him sharply, scowling. "When three separate people come in complaining that the sun shines too early and that they want curtains, I think I'm allowed to lose my patience a little!"

"That's what you get for being such a giving king," Mokuba argued, smiling, as he jumped up to sit on the rail of the balcony. "If you were meaner, people wouldn't come complaining."

"…You're supposed to be on _my_ side," the king grumbled, leaning his elbows on the railing as he turned his attention back to his friend. "What news?"

Yami smirked. "Well, it's blond, and has big brown eyes."

Seto immediately waved it away. "Not interested."

"Really? You won't even take a look?" The feline knew his friend was a curious person, and would never turn down getting a look at anyone he thought might be worth giving a second glance; that's why he'd made sure to get a picture.

The taller teen frowned, crossing his arms, before finally giving in with a sigh and nod. "Alright. Show me."

Smirk growing just a little, he shot Mokuba a triumphant look and wiggled his eyebrows. "Here it is." Mokuba raised an eyebrow in surprise. The person _must_ be good looking for him to look so smug.

Seto took the photo with a long-suffering sigh, as if this wasn't the first time (and it probably wasn't), then looked down to see the person the Cheshire cat was so intent on him seeing. "…It's a girl. You know I don't like girls."

"Oh, no. It's a guy," Yami replied, crossing his arms and rocking back on his heels proudly. "He's feisty, too. Threatened to rip my ears and tail out."

"…Huh…" Now that he looked for it, he could see the more masculine contours of the blond's body and angular facial features. And he _did_ want a feisty queen, because having someone who just agreed with him would be no fun. He liked challenges. "…Then why is he in a dress?"

"Psh, like I was going to stick around and find out!" the feline exclaimed, scowling. "Did you not just hear me? He _threatened_ to rip my _ears and tail_ out! And then he threw a rock at me! I'll risk a lot for you, Seto, but he really wanted to hurt me!"

Seto hummed to himself and smirked, suddenly intrigued by the blond boy he was looking at. "I see." Feisty _and_ gorgeous. He wouldn't mind getting to know this… beautiful, exotic creature. "…Is there any way to bring him here?"

"I'm sure I could find a way to lead him here. He's looking for a white rabbit." Yami frowned. "Yuugi's taking him to go see Bakura and Marik. Bakura's celebrating his unbirthday, you know."

"Yes. Wait—Shit! That was today?"

Mokuba rolled his eyes. "Don't worry, big brother. I already sent our gift to him."

Seto groaned and rubbed his temple. "I need a break from being king…"

"Hey! Isn't Ryou a white rabbit?" the younger boy exclaimed suddenly. "Ryou's here, you know, because of that trial we're about to have—"

"That's _right._" The brunet smirked, crossing his arms again as he looked once again to the picture in his hand. "So he'll be coming here anyway. Yami, go tell him that if he's looking for Ryou, he's here."

Yami sighed. "I don't know if he'll listen to me, but I can try."

Seto rolled his eyes and sighed as well—though more in an annoyed manner than an unsure one. "Bakura and Marik will back you up. They don't like you, but they know you're not a liar."

"Alright. You better hope it works, though," the feline replied, scowling at him, before he began to disappear from view.

"Tell Yuugi I say 'hi!'" Mokuba added, and Yami's mouth stayed behind only long enough to reply before it, too, disappeared.

"I will."

Seto made sure he was gone before turning to his brother to show him the picture. "This is going to be my wife."

"Huh." The younger boy tilted his head. "He's… pretty. I hope he's fun to hang out with; it's boring when you're doing all of that official document stuff."

.-.-.-.-.-.

Katsuya's head hit the table. He had long since given up on trying to be called by his last name; every creature here was rude and assumed. Then again, he was calling them by _their_ first names—but they didn't _have_ last names! He was growing more and more frustrated, though, because the March Hare was _not_ Ryou, but he looked a lot like him. …Except for the fact that Ryou looked like a cute bunny and Bakura looked like an evil bunny.

"Katsuya, are you okay?" Yuugi asked in concern, grabbing his shoulder and shaking him lightly. "I know Bakura's not who you were looking for, but…"

"Whose unbirthday is it?" the blond suddenly inquired, looking up tiredly.

No matter how much cake he'd eaten, no matter how much tea he'd drunk, the hallucinations had _not_ gone away. He was sure this was one of Marik's twisted mind games, though, and when he got out of it, he was going to find him and kill him, no matter how much Malik begged.

"Mine," Bakura replied, playing with one of his long white ears idly. "Best present I've gotten is from the King of Hearts. I'll have to send him an un-thank you card."

Katsuya nodded. "Of course. I see." And he did see. It hurt to admit it, but he _did_ understand that.

Yuugi was interested immediately. "What is it? May I see it?"

The albino leaned back and lifted a heavy golden necklace—the Sennen Ring. "I like it. It's solid gold."

Katsuya's eye twitched. Marik would die a slow and painful death.

"So, who was it you said you were looking for again?" Marik asked, turning his attention to the blond. Without giving him a chance he offered, "More tea? Cake?"

"No thanks. I'm stuffed." Sighing, the dress-clad boy leaned back in his seat. "I'm looking for a white rabbit named Ryou. He's my friend, and I just want to find him and go home."

Bakura looked interested in this information. "A white rabbit? And he looks like me?" He remembered the disappointment on the blond's face when he'd thought he'd seen his friend and then found it wasn't him at all. "…Is he cute?"

"Don't tell me you're getting horny again! You haven't even seen him!" Marik exclaimed, scowling.

Katsuya blushed a little and crossed his arms, frowning. "Well, _I've_ always thought he's cute. Like a little bunny you just want to snuggle."

When the albino stayed silent, the darker skinned man threw his hands up in disgust. "Oh my Ra, you _are_ getting horny! You haven't even seen him!"

"Bakura's a hare, Marik. He gets horny at the drop of a hat. No insult intended, of course." Leaping gracefully from a tree, Yami landed beside the table. "Happy unbirthday, Bakura."

Bakura grinned as he was passed a brightly wrapped back and began tearing into it. "Haha! I knew there was a reason I liked unbirthdays!"

The feline raised a brow at him, then turned his attention to the blond and the other feline watching him warily. "I have been sent to tell you that a white rabbit named Ryou is currently at the king's castle."

Katsuya scowled at him and stood, slamming his hands on the table. "And just why the hell should I listen to _you_, you prick?"

"Whoa, hey! Yami's a pain in the ass, but he would never lie," Marik exclaimed, frowning. "Besides… even if he did, he would never do it against the king. The king doesn't have a sense of humor."

The blond narrowed his eyes skeptically. "…If you _are_ lying, Yami… I'm going to make you wish you were never born."

Bakura shot to his feet as well. "I'm coming too! I wanna this cute little bunny everyone's talking about!" he exclaimed excitedly, then blinked. "…You got me a book? Really?"

"It's a collector's edition worth a lot of money. I figured if you were going to pawn anything I gave you, it might as well be worth something," Yami replied, smiling wryly.

The hare was ecstatic. "You _do_ know me!" He was so happy, he glomped the feline roughly. "I LOVE YOU!"

"Let's go before he does something _else_ embarrassing," Marik ordered, ushering both Katsuya and Yuugi away. "Like kiss him."

The blond looked up at him innocently. "You know, for a mad hatter, you really aren't that mad."

"We're all mad here," the taller man replied. "And as such, that makes us normal."

"…I guess I never really looked at it like that." Katsuya frowned in sudden concern. "Wait. Does that mean _I'm_ crazy?"

Yuugi smiled at him sweetly. "You're not crazy, Katsuya! You're still really weird by our standards, so you must not be mad!"

He was glad to hear that. So very, very glad. "Oh. Good."

Marik smiled brightly. "Besides, this gives me the perfect time to attack my little lover-poo!"

Both boys looked up at him blankly. "…What."

"My cute little Maliky-poo!" he repeated, clasping his hands together. "He's so _cute,_ and _sweet,_ and _molestable_—"

"I really don't like where this conversation is going!" Yuugi exclaimed, covering his ears and blushing.

Katsuya let out a yelp as he was nearly knocked to the ground and hurriedly grabbed onto Marik before he fell down. "Ack! The hell!"

"I'll race you, Marik!" Bakura called over his shoulder, smirking. "Betcha I'll get there first!"

"_CHEATER!_" the platinum blond roared, dropping the boy holding onto him, and began sprinting after the hair.

Katsuya grunted and sat up, rubbing the back of his head as he glared after them. "I hope you lose, you jackass!" He took the hand being offered and pulled himself off, taking a moment to dust off his dress—just because he didn't want to wear it didn't mean he didn't want to look presentable.

Yami raised an eyebrow at him. "Why _are_ you wearing a dress, anyway?"

"I don't have to explain myself to you!" he exclaimed defensively, blushing a little. "Maybe I _wanna_ wear it!"

The Cheshire cat raised an eyebrow. "…Why?"

"I just said-!" Growing frustrated, Katsuya waved his hands over his head. "Somebody changed me while I was unconscious! I wasn't wearing this when I got here!"

"Oh! That's terrible!" Yuugi exclaimed, frowning. "What if it had been a rapist!"

"…Thanks, Yuug'. You make me feel better. I mean, it's just a little, but it's the thought that counts I guess," the blond replied, sighing.

Yami rolled his eyes and sighed. "Unbelievable. Well, if we ever hope to catch up to Marik and Bakura, we'll have to walk quickly."

The taller boy tilted his head, blinking in surprise. "What? We'll actually catch up to them?"

"Oh, definitely." The smaller feline smiled at him sweetly. "We'll find them collapsed on the middle of the path in a few minutes. They forget they can only go that fast in short bursts. Sometimes they'll be ahead of us; sometimes they'll be behind us. We'll pass each other a lot."

"…Uh huh." Crossing his arms, Katsuya rolled his eyes. "Unbelievable. They're just like they are in the real world—acting without thinking."

Yami raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you talking about yourself?"

"I'll kill you!" the blond exclaimed, reaching out to grab the smart ass cat's neck. "Kill you dead!"

"Yuugi I trust you to get him to the castle bye!" Yami exclaimed, and his throat disappeared from view, leaving the taller boy's hands grasping at air. His mouth stayed behind just a minute to blow a raspberry at him before it disappeared as well.

Katsuya let out a frustrated scream. "Just wait until I get my hands on you, pussy! I'll _kill_ you! I'm gonna rip out your ears—"

Yuugi laughed nervously and grabbed his arm. "Calm down, Katsuya! You'll use all your energy screaming when you should be walking."

"—And then I'm gonna cut out your _spleen—_"

"Katsuya!"


	3. The King of Hearts

**Katsuya's Adventures in Wonderland**

_**The King of Hearts**_

Katsuya looked around nervously, wringing his hands as Yuugi clutched onto his skirt. Neither of them had ever met the king (Yuugi because he kept mostly to himself, Katsuya because he wasn't _from_ Wonderland), so they were both a little anxious. It didn't help that every time they passed a servant or a guard, they began whispering.

They couldn't believe they even got inside the castle, but apparently Yami had gone ahead and told the guards they were coming. Now they were just nervously following the directions the guards had given them. Coming to a stop in front of two huge doors, they glanced around for where they were supposed to go next. They nearly shrieked when someone darted past them to slam his hand against the door.

Bakura turned triumphantly, smirking. "Ha! I win!"

"You're a _hare,_ Bakura." Marik scowled at him. "You've always been faster than me."

"Don't _do_ that!" Yuugi squealed, clutching his chest. "Jeez! Give me a heart attack!"

The two looked at them in surprise, then smiled. Bakura chuckled softly. "Our bad. Didn't mean to scare you. Let's go."

"In there? With the king?" Katsuya asked hesitantly. He didn't remember much—he'd only read the book once, in fifth grade because he had to—but he remembered that the Queen of Hearts had been very, _very_ mean. Who was to say the King of Hearts wasn't just like that?

"Don't worry; the king will love you!" Marik cooed, then offered him his arm and smirked. "M'lady."

"I'll fucking 'm'lady' _you!_" the blond hissed, glaring at him. He squeaked as the man hooked arms with him and led him toward the door as Bakura kicked it open. "Marik-!"

Marik grinned and pulled him into the throne room. "Calm down, Katsuya."

Katsuya found his mouth snapping shut as he saw just who exactly was on the throne; a whimper escaped his lips. He was gonna get his head chopped off for sure.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Seto looked up as he heard the door burst open, frowning, and immediately recognized Bakura and Marik. Bakura had always been an evil looking hare, and Marik was hard to miss with that stupid green hat. His eyes, however, were immediately drawn to the blond the mad hatter was dragging toward him.

Well, the boy certainly didn't _look_ feisty. He looked more frightened than anything, trying to hide behind Marik and make himself the smallest target possible. Then again, Mokuba and Yami had informed him that he was quite intimidating sometimes, especially when he was doing paperwork—apparently he was quite irritable when he was doing it. He hoped he didn't frighten him away as he stood, walking down the few steps to meet them.

Bakura got to him first, shaking his hand and looking around absently. "Hey, Seto…"

"Yes? Ah, I see you like your gift," the brunet replied, smirking slightly when he found the hare wearing the necklace he'd sent him.

"Yeah…" The albino looked up at him, ears perking up slightly. "I was told there was a white rabbit here."

Seto blinked at him for a moment, then scowled. "Oh my God, you're horny already."

"YES, I'M HORNY," he replied loudly, glaring at him, before throwing his hands up in frustration. "I'm a _hare,_ Seto! I like _sex!_"

The brunet growled softly before stating, "If you can find him, you can introduce yourself to him. If he wants nothing to do with you, you have to leave him be."

Bakura seemed content with that as he nodded amiably. "Yeah. Okay."

"Oh, but don't try to—" Seto began to add, only to find himself talking to thin air. He blinked for a moment, then turned to Marik. "I suppose you'll be off then, too."

Marik smiled. "You know me so well." And suddenly he found himself alone with the blond and a miniature, cute Yami.

He stared at them for a few moments before smiling slightly. "Well, I've never seen you two before. And what are your names?"

The blond immediately looked distrustful, eyes narrowing skeptically. The feline fidgeted anxiously. "Um… I'm Yuugi."

"Aibou!" Yami appeared out of nowhere to grab him tightly. "I thought you'd never get here!"

"Aaaahhhh see what I mean?" Yuugi exclaimed, looking up at the blond, before he disappeared just long enough to escape the other feline's arms and take off running.

Yami frowned and took chase. "Aibou, come back! Aibou! _Aibou!_"

Seto watched them go, then turned his attention to the blond again, offering him his hand. "And may I know the name of a delightful young man such as yourself?"

The other teen still looked skeptical, and more than a little suspicious, but placed his hand in his nonetheless. "Jounouchi Katsuya."

"Jounouchi Katsuya." The brunet bent down slightly and lifted his hand to press a gentle kiss to the back of it, then glanced back up at him through his lashes. "A beautiful name for an equally beautiful person."

"Blaaaagh!" Katsuya yanked his hand back, looking horrified. "What the hell are you trying to pull, Kaiba?"

Seto raised an eyebrow and stood up straight. "I don't know who this 'Kaiba' is, but _I'm_ not pulling anything."

The blond scowled at him. "I'm _not_ calling you Seto, you prick! And I don't believe you! You're probably just doing this to trick me so you can make fun of me!"

"I assure you, Katsuya, that I would never do that to you," the taller boy replied, frowning.

The younger teen growled and crossed his arms. "You _would_ and I'm not letting you have a chance to pull your mean tricks, you jerk! I'm just here for Ryou and then we're going _home!_" So saying, he turned around and began to march away, off to go find Ryou.

Smirking at the blond's audacity, Seto slid an arm around his waist and yanked him back up against him, making him gasp softly in surprise. "I don't think so, _Katsuya._ After all, I'm the king… and you are my guest."

"W-w-what the hell are you trying to pull, moneybags!" Katsuya grabbed at his arm and began struggling, grunting as he tried to yank his arm away—but it was like a freaking vice! "Let me go, moneybags!"

The brunet chuckled softly and used his free hand to grab the other boy's chin firmly, making him look back. "You obviously have no manners, being so rude to the king, Katsuya. Perhaps we should… remedy that."

He didn't like the way that sounded. He didn't like it at _all!_

"No! Prick! Just let me go, damn it!" When just pulling at his arm didn't work, the younger teen snarled and stomped on his foot—_hard._ "Fucking asshole!"

Seto grunted softly in pain and released him in favor of getting his feet to safety. "Ouch!"

Katsuya turned back toward him and scowled, gripping his hands into fists. "Now tell me where Ryou is, or I'll belt you!"

'_Feisty, indeed.'_ The brunet raised an eyebrow at him, a little surprised by the amount of spunk the boy had—especially since he was wearing a dress. His other brow arched up to match the first one as he heard a loud growl, and the blond blushed and covered his stomach, looking away from him quickly. "…I don't suppose you had much to eat at Bakura's unbirthday, then?"

The blond huffed and crossed his arms, looking away from him quickly. "Not that it's any of your business, but I had plenty to eat! I'm… I'm just a growing guy, that's all!"

Seto hummed softly, nodding a little, but he was almost certain that the other boy had finished growing for quite some time. "Of course."

"Are you mocking me, moneybags?" Katsuya snapped, spinning to glare at him again.

"Not at all." Smiling a little, the brunet tilted his head. "I was just wondering if I could invite you to join me for dinner without you trying to rip my head off."

He wanted to say no, really. He probably would have, too, except then his stomach lurched and growled in complaint, demanding food and _soon._ Covering his stomach again, he blushed a little more and glanced off to the side. "…I guess eating with you wouldn't be _too_ much trouble." Remembering the unbirthday cake he'd eaten, he looked back up at him quickly, frowning. "But I want to make my own food."

Seto raised his eyebrows again, surprised and just a little offended. "Are you suggesting that my cooks aren't exemplary? That I'd eat anything less than perfect?"

"_No,_" Katsuya retorted, scowling again. "I just don't want to eat something like Bakura's stupid unbirthday cake! Gave me a stomachache!"

"Bakura and Marik can't cook," the brunet replied, rolling his eyes. "I can't believe you actually _ate_ their food. …Marik's unbirthday cake was bright blue."

"Bakura's was green, and I figured it was because he was a hare. I didn't think it was because they'd dumped everything in their kitchen in it!" The blond placed his hands on his hips, glaring at him. "You act as if I should know better, you prick, when I hadn't ever met them before!"

The king blinked at him for a moment, just observing him, before he smiled again. "I'm sure you'd like to freshen up a little."

Katsuya really wanted to say no, wanted to deny him, but being clean sounded _really_ good. He had, after all, brushed through grass and fluffy trees and had ended up on the ground quite a few times. He felt dirty, and he was tired of wearing the stupid dress.

Sighing, he looked down at his feet and nodded as he crossed his arms. "Yeah."

"Good." Seto motioned with his hand for someone to come, and the blond was surprised to find a bright pink canine wearing a black maid's dress trotting up to them. "Show Katsuya to a guest room so he can get cleaned up, please. Make sure he has something to wear when he's finished, also."

The canine—obviously a maid, now—bowed slightly, then turned and began walking away.

The brunet caught the other boy's chin before he could go and pressed a kiss to his cheek before releasing him. "I'll see you at dinner then."

As Katsuya sputtered and cursed behind him, Seto couldn't help a smirk as he turned and walked away. He couldn't wait to try and tame him. And, if he managed that without too much injury, he _definitely_ couldn't wait to claim him.

.-.-.-.-.-.

"Stupid jackass bastard fucking _prick!_" Katsuya glared at himself in the mirror, having scrubbed his face so hard it was pink. "Who the hell does he think he is, kissing me like that?"

He tried to ignore the fluttery feeling in his stomach, and he ruthlessly stabbed into submission the thoughts that Seto had incredibly firm lips that could probably make him swoon if the brunet wanted to. He made sure not to think about how strong and muscular his arm had been, or how hard and warm his chest felt against his back. And any thoughts of what he looked like under all those clothes were shot. …Surviving thoughts were shot again.

He decided that all of the maids were _creepy,_ too. He had thought that maybe he'd just gotten a subtle Wonderland. Except for grass as tall as trees and friends with animal appendages that didn't know him, it had been pretty good. Then he'd seen the maids as they'd bustled about making a bath ready for him.

He had thought the pink dog was weird, but when he saw the green _cheetah,_ he knew this Wonderland was just as screwed up as the book.

Sighing, Katsuya turned toward the clothes that had been left for him, still a little ticked off about _them_ too.

It was a blue and white checkered dress with little blue ribbons hanging from the sleeves and pockets, and two bows resting at the base of the straps that would wrap around his neck. Lace bordered all of the hems, and had a gathered waist. But it was still a dress. At least it still matched his converse, which one of the maids had cleaned for him (how did they do that without thumbs?).

Pinned to the dress, however, making him even more pissed off, was the statement that he either wore it or came to dinner naked. What was worse was a pair of white ruffled panties that had been left for undergarments. He didn't want to wear them, but he'd be damned if he went to dinner without anything on beneath the skirt. Growling as he began to dress, he promised himself that he'd kill Kaiba before dessert.

Once he was dressed and he'd gotten his hair dry, he poked his head outside of the room and looked around. He let out an 'eep' as something rushed past him and turned to look after it. "…Ryou?"

"Can't talk I'm busy crazy hare on my tail!" Ryou called out frantically, and disappeared around a corner.

Katsuya yipped as he was nearly bowled over again, then clutched a hand to his chest, breathing heavily. "How many times are you guys going to try and kill me?"

"Can't talk I'm busy I'm chasing a rabbit!" Bakura called back before he, too, disappeared around the corner.

The blond blinked in confusion, tilting his head a little, then jumped when he heard a small cough. "_Eep!_"

Mokuba blinked up at him for a moment, surprised, before smiling. "Seto asked me to escort you down to the dining hall before I leave for my date." He turned and offered the blond his arm. "Shall we?"

Katsuya found himself more willing to humor Mokuba than Seto. Returning the smile, he hooked arms with him and allowed the younger boy to lead him to the dining hall. "Thanks, Mokuba."

"You're welcome!" he answered brightly, then frowned in confusion. "Wait, how did you know my name?"

"Uh… Yami mentioned it," the blond answered quickly.

Mokuba raised an eyebrow at him but nodded. "Okay. I don't really get how you found that out, threatening his life and stuff, but okay."

Katsuya scowled and defensively exclaimed, "He called me girly!"

"…And that warranted wanting to rip out of ears; I understand."

"Don't make fun of me!" He was ready to bonk him on the head. However, they'd come into the dining hall, and Seto was watching him. He knew that if he hurt Mokuba, all bets were finished and it would be off with his head. Huffing, he yanked his arm away from him instead and scowled.

Mokuba rolled his eyes and made claw-like motions with his fingers. "Meow. Have fun with this one, Seto."

Katsuya frowned and watched him leave, then turned his attention to the king, feeling a little hurt that Seto was treating him just like he'd treated other people. He… had hoped that maybe he was at least a little special, getting that kiss and all. But then he was hardening again, scowling. "And just _what_ did he mean by _that?_"

Seto stood and pulled out a chair for him, smiling innocently—and the blond was disturbed to find he looked kind of cute like that. "Oh, don't mind him. He doesn't know what he's talking about."

"Well then what does he _think_ he's talking about, moneybags?" He refused to have dinner with someone that was playing him, no matter how hungry he was.

The brunet rolled his eyes. "He believes I actually had the chance to try and court Yami at one point, and thinks it's my fault it didn't work out. It isn't true, of course; Yami's been mooning over Yuugi since he first saw him."

"…Oh." Katsuya blushed a little and looked away, then quickly shook his head and looked back toward him, scowling again. "And what's with the dress?"

"I figured that you must like them to be wearing one earlier," the king answered, smirking, before he gave the blond a leer. "And you don't exactly look bad in one, either."

Blushing even more, the younger teen sat down quickly and ducked his head so the brunet couldn't see it. "Shut up! That note you left was still mean!"

Seto raised his eyebrows as he sat back down in his seat at the head of the table. "Oh? I would have enjoyed you coming down either way. I must say I'm pleased you came in the dress, though. I wouldn't want anyone else to see you nude."

"Don't _say_ things like that!" Katsuya exclaimed, waving his hands frantically. "Jeez, you pervert!"

"Hmm." The brunet's smug smile grew, and the younger teen had a sudden sinking feeling that he wouldn't like what he said next. "You know, I can be a lot more vulgar." His lips twisted into a lewd smirk. "I could show you what a _real_ pervert is if you'd like."

"No-!" The blond covered his glowing cheeks, telling himself he did _not_ care if Kaiba could be more vulgar and he was _not_ interested to hear just how much of a pervert he could be. "I don't want—"

Seto didn't wait for his entire protest, however, and leaned his chin on his hands, still smirking. "While I was looking over some documents in the library, I had a very nice daydream about you. I had to go to my room to masturbate before I came down here, it was so arousing. Would you like to hear it?"

Katsuya shook his head wildly, squeezing his eyes shut. "No! Don't tell me, you pervert! I—"

"I imagined you coming into the library, wearing that dress. You were looking at all of the books, and then you grabbed one and went and sat down in one of the chairs. Your skirt had ridden up, and I could see your cute little panties." His smirk grew to a wicked grin when the blond let out a whimper. "So I got up and threw you onto the table. I spread your legs and began to touch you, tease your little opening through your panties and rub your dick as you trembled like a nervous little virgin."

"Stopitstopitstopitstopit—" He felt horrible for not covering his ears, but he _really_ wanted to hear what the other man was saying. Convincing himself that it was because he wanted to be able to know what he was kicking his ass for later, and not because he was actually interested, he steeled himself for the rest of the story he knew was surely coming. He felt as if his face would combust if he didn't stop soon, though.

Seto leaned forward and nearly purred, "You were _so_ arousing, Katsuya, especially after I'd teased you for a quarter of an hour. Your body was so sweaty, and such a cute shade of pink, and your cheeks were apple red. I could have just eaten you up. You begged me to stop. Who was I to refuse someone so beautiful?"

"I'm not—"

"_So_ beautiful." His blue eyes darkened. "I took off your panties and shoved your skirt out of the way. There was some honey for the tea they'd brought me earlier left over, so I used it to lubricate you. The noises you made were so cute; I could have come just listening to you as I moved my fingers inside your body."

Katsuya whimpered and looked down at his lap in embarrassment, covering his cheeks again quickly. "Y-you pervert! I-I couldn't 've—"

"But the noises you made when I finally put myself _inside_ you, Katsuya. Those were the truly delicious ones. You screamed and cried, begged for me to go deeper and harder. I pushed your knees up by your ears and kept moving inside you. And when you reached your climax, you screamed so loudly; I thought I'd died and gone to heaven. You were so hot and tight." Suddenly Seto's smirk was gone and was replaced by a scowl. "And then a servant interrupted me to tell me dinner was nearly ready, and I had to go to my room to finish myself. I was so pissed off."

"You-! You _pervert!_" It hurt. It hurt to know that the brunet wanted him for sex. Katsuya grew even more determined to get Ryou and go home. "Fucking _pervert!_"

Seto didn't know what it was, but he could tell something was wrong. "Katsuya?"

"Y-you just want to have sex, is that it, you horny bastard?" Standing, the blond turned and started to leave. "Well you can just go to hell, you pervert!"

It was then the king realized that teasing the boy with his story hadn't helped him; if anything, he'd driven him away. He obviously thought badly of him because of some 'Kaiba,' but telling him the story had only hurt him. He probably would have done better if he was rude and cruel.

But he couldn't let Katsuya get away thinking he was scummiest man he'd ever met.

Katsuya gasped as he was yanked back into the brunet's arms, then began struggling wildly. "No-! I'm not going to let you hurt me! I don't want to hurt anymore!"

"Katsuya, listen to me." Growling in frustration, Seto turned the blond to face him. "Katsuya!"

"Why do you have to keep hurting me? You're not even real, and you're not even calling me names, but you still manage to make me feel small and worthless—" The younger boy whimpered again. "Just leave me alone, Kaiba…!"

The brunet growled again. "I am _not_ Kaiba. I do _not_ want to make you feel small and worthless; I haven't been _trying_ to hurt you! Just tell me who this Kaiba is and I'll have his head chopped off!"

Katsuya couldn't help a small, anxious giggle. If he told the king he _was_ Kaiba—just in a nicer, less mean form—would he still hold up to that? "No. I don't want him dead."

"Then at least let me lock him in the dungeon for a few decades." Seto scowled. "How anyone could hurt a beautiful creature like you is beyond me."

Sighing—and still giggling at the new thought of the king sending himself to the dungeons—Katsuya patted his chest a few times to show he was okay now. "Oh, God, I needed that." He took a few deep breaths before giving him a small smile. "You're right; you're not Kaiba. You're the anti-Kaiba."

The brunet eyed him for a moment before slowly releasing him. "You're weird, Katsuya."

"Where I come from, we're all weird," he replied, smiling.

"…I'd like to visit there someday." The king narrowed his eyes. "So I can meet this 'Kaiba' and kick his ass."

The idea of this Seto kicking the real Seto's ass was just too funny.

Seto frowned at him in annoyance as he doubled over laughing. "Katsuya? What's so funny? …Katsuya!"

Katsuya truly felt that he couldn't explain to save his life, so he just sat down at the table again, still giggling softly as his imagined fight of Seto versus Seto carried on in his head. "It's nothing. What's for dinner?"

The brunet didn't know whether this was a good or bad development, but he figured he'd treat it like a good one; after all, the other teen no longer wanted to run away from him nearly in tears. He would have to keep in mind just how far he could go with him. The blond had only been moderately embarrassed until he'd gotten to the part of actual intercourse. Apparently, the foreplay and preparation didn't distress him did as much as the act of sex itself.

He'd have to keep that in mind the next time he decided it would be fun to tease the other boy.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Katsuya watched some servants carried away their dishes, still marveling at the fact that the various animals merely took the dishes on their heads. He nearly jumped out of his seat when he felt a light touch on his shoulder and turned sharply, blushing a little at being caught off guard by the man he'd decided he would have to watch like a hawk. "Huh?"

Seto smiled at him in what he hoped was merely a friendly manner. "I was just thinking… It's such a nice night out, with the moon so full and bright. Perhaps you'd like to take in the garden with me?"

"…Well…" The blond frowned and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I really _should_ go find Ryou…"

"He still needs to stay a few days, because we have a trial he needs to attend." The king's eyes widened pleadingly. "You'll have plenty of time to find him later, Katsuya."

Punching in the face the thought that he was actually very cute like that, the younger teen sighed and nodded slowly. "Yeah, okay."

Seto smiled again and stood, offering him his hand to help him up. "I'm glad to hear it."

Katsuya took the hand offered and managed a small smile for him, but really, this person… wasn't the one he wanted him to be. He wasn't used to niceness. Even when he'd been teasing him with his daydream had been more tolerable, because the real Seto simply didn't _do_ nice. He did affectionately annoying and cruel, but he was only ever nice to Mokuba.

He supposed he'd have to put up with it until he got a chance to talk to Ryou, though. This Seto seemed just as determined as the real one, and if the king had decided that he was his new hobby, he'd probably never get a moment of rest. Humoring him would be easier than defying him all the time. Besides, he… wasn't entirely unpleasant.

He kicked the thought that this Seto was incredibly hot and sex didn't sound so bad out of his head as hard as he could as the brunet led him to the door opening out into the garden.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Lol, here's a picture of Katsuya's new dress. Poor Katsuya probably wants to kill me.

http : / / www . cosmates . jp / shop / images / products / A00004 _ big . jpg


	4. At It Like Rabbits

Author's Note: I just realized. I like making Kaiba spank Jounouchi. I like putting it in my stories. I feel so… unoriginal. In my defense, Jounouchi shouldn't be so freakin' spankable.

Also! Warning of dragon sex. No, seriously. Two dragons have sex. …And Seto and Jou watch. D**:**

**Katsuya's Adventures in Wonderland**

_**At It Like Rabbits**_

Katsuya was glad that he'd agreed to go for a walk through the garden. Right now they were walking through an area of roses and—though he'd be damned if he admitted it—he _loved_ roses. And there were more than just red and white ones, like in the book; there were yellow, pink, and even blue ones, too. It was every rose-lover's dream. And it gave him an excuse to question Seto endlessly about them.

"Ooh! And what's this one called?" A large plant with creamy white roses looking so delicate currently had his attention.

"It's called 'Fair Bianca.'" Seto smiled. "You like these?"

"Of course I—_oooh!_ Orange roses!" Dragging the brunet over to the other plant, he released him in favor of clasping his hands together as he gazed at the beautiful flora. "I've never seen orange roses before! This one is my favorite!"

The king couldn't help a soft laugh. "Katsuya, just a minute ago you said the 'Cinnamon Twist' was your favorite."

"But this one's my _favorite_ of favorites!" Looking back up at him, the blond tilted his head innocently. "What's this one called, Seto?"

He decided that the blond was clearly interested in this rose plant and smiled affectionately. "It's called 'Sundowner.'"

"A Sundowner." Leaning forward, he closed his eyes and sniffed deeply. "Mm… It smells so good!"

Seto tilted his head slightly, seeing the glowing adoration for the flowers that the younger teen clearly felt, then turned and looked back at the plant. Seeing one particular blossom—not incredibly small but neither obtrusive—he reached up and caught the stem, snapping it off from its parent plant. When the blond gasped, looking horrified, he smiled and reached up to tuck the stem behind his ear. "It's true that they're beautiful, but they're not nearly as beautiful as _you._"

Katsuya blushed and looked down at his feet in embarrassment. He told himself that this was _Kaiba,_ and he shouldn't be feeling all _fluttery_ and _flushed_ by anything he did, but for some reason, he couldn't help it. The brunet just kept being so _sweet,_ and… and _thoughtful._ He knew that if he got attached to him, though, he'd only get hurt when he and Ryou got back to the real world, because Kaiba would still be a prick there. He didn't want to deal with that.

"You know, if you like roses so much…" The brunet smirked; the other boy had set himself up for this. "…I'm sure I can have them strewn about the bedroom for a very romantic and sensual tryst."

So he didn't know what 'tryst' meant, but he understood the 'romantic' and 'sensual' parts and could easily infer what he meant by those rose petals. Blushing even more, he scowled. "Yeah, so I can shove them all down your throat!"

"Mm." Raising an eyebrow inquisitively, the king leaned toward him, smirk growing a little. "Are you sure you wouldn't rather shove something else down my throat, _Katsuuuya?_"

Katsuya gasped and took a step back, eyes widening. "Just what are you suggesting!"

"I'm suggesting…" the brunet purred, matching him with a step forward as he lifted a hand and trailed the tips of his fingers down the other boy's chest. "That if you want to shove your dick down my throat, I'm sure I wouldn't mind if you returned the favor."

"You perverted _bastard!_" It seemed as if he was watching another person slapping the king across the face, as if it wasn't his palm colliding with the larger teen's cheek. He did know, however, that the shocked look on the brunet's face was quickly twisting into an expression of anger, and it wouldn't be good for him if he allowed him to reach the furious level he knew he could get to. But how could he stop him?

Seto opened his mouth, ready to rip the blond's head off, but stopped in confusion when the smaller teen cupped his face in his hands. "Katsu-?" He blinked as he suddenly found the blond's lips mashed against his. This… was obviously a distraction. But a very good one. He very much liked this interruption.

Katsuya yipped as he was suddenly yanked up against the brunet's (very firm, muscular) body and broke the kiss, pressing his hands against his chest. "K-Kaiba-!"

"I am not Kaiba." The king grabbed his chin, scowling. "I'm offended that you would still call me by his name when I'm so obviously _not_ him." His eyes darkened slightly in annoyance before he grabbed the back of the blond's head and yanked him into another kiss.

The dress-clad boy couldn't help a small mewl as the brunet slid his tongue down his throat, trembling when he felt his other hand cupping his rear. "Mmn!" He gasped as he felt the much-too-friendly hand slipping under his skirt and began to struggle, frantically pounding on the king's shoulders. "Mm!"

Seto allowed him to pull away, still scowling, and crossed his arms. "You better watch yourself, Katsuya, because I'm tired of your rudeness. I don't like being insulted. You're lucky I haven't taken you over my knee and given you the spanking you deserve."

The blond found himself more offended by the threat than truly frightened. Placing his hands on his hips, he scowled as well. "You wouldn't _dare._"

"Wouldn't I?" The brunet raised his eyebrow skeptically. Seeing that he hadn't convinced him, he grabbed his wrist and dragged him over to a stone bench nearby. "Come here."

"No, what are you-! Ka—Seto! Hey, Seto! Wait! Seto! _Seto!_" Letting out a startled yelp, Katsuya suddenly found himself strewn over the brunet's knees, and then the back of his skirt was being dragged up. Realizing what was going to happen, he began struggling. "No-! Fuck, Seto! No! Don't you freaking _dare—_" He shrieked as the king brought his hand down on his left cheek, hips twitching instinctively. "_Yeek!_"

Seto couldn't help a smirk as he brought his palm down on the blond's ass again, taking that time to give the cheek beneath his hand a firm squeeze. "I knew you had a cute butt under that skirt."

"_Nooo!_" He tried to squirm harder, but the brunet wasn't letting him go. After a few more spanks, he realized that he wasn't going to be able to wait out the spanking; the brunet had more energy than he did at this point and he seemed to take genuine pleasure out of smacking his ass. "Fine, fine! I'll fucking behave!"

"Good." The king gave him a final pat on the butt, smiling. "That's all I wanted. We'll work on manners later— You'll like that, I promise."

Katsuya scowled and sat up, hurriedly pulling his skirt back down and turning to face away from him. "Humph! Perverted jackass!"

The brunet raised an eyebrow at him. "Didn't we just go over this?"

"I said I'd behave," the younger boy retorted, crossing his arms. "I never said I'd stop calling you names!"

"Touché." Seeing that the rose had fallen from the dress-clad boy's hair in the altercation, he picked it up and turned, tucking it behind his ear again. "That was clever of you, Katsuya."

Katsuya frowned, then looked down at his lap and sighed sadly. "Don't make fun of me, Ka—Seto." He lifted one of his hands to brush his hair out of his eyes. "I… I know you don't mean it. I'm not smart. I know I'm not." He whimpered as the brunet grabbed his chin and closed his eyes tightly; he didn't need to see the annoyance to know that it was there. "No, Seto. I know I'm not smart. I… I didn't take very good care of myself when I was younger. I can't remember a lot of stuff, and sometimes the things I _do_ remember are fuzzy."

Seto frowned, taking a moment to merely stroke the blond's hair. "…Just because you can't remember doesn't mean you're not smart."

"…Lots of people don't see it the same way you do," the younger teen answered softly.

"Lots of people are stupid."

The blond couldn't help a snort at the way the other boy had said it. He'd said it as if 'duh, everyone knows that.' It was so weird, but so expected of the real Kaiba, too, and he could see them overlapping now, when he looked for it. That… might make going back a little easier.

Seto raised an eyebrow at him, then frowned and tilted his head. "Do you hear that?"

"Huh?" The dress-clad boy tilted his head as well, trying to listen for what the brunet was hearing. "…No, I—"

"_Aha! B-Bakura! Bakuuuuraaaaa!"_

It was Ryou's voice, and they were obviously in the middle of something very important.

Katsuya squealed and jerked backward, horrified by what he was hearing. "Oh my God! Seto-! That's Ryou! And they're—they're having—"

"Sex." The brunet scowled. "They're having sex within hours of meeting each other and _I'm_ stuck with the prude."

"Hey!" To be completely honest, the blond really wanted to get to know the king now, to see what other traits overlapped with the real Kaiba. Hearing that he just wanted sex, though, hurt. Just when he'd _finally_ thought they were going to have a real conversation, the brunet had gone back to sex. It was as if he wanted a whore and the blond was just convenient. He didn't have to put up with this.

Seto raised an eyebrow as the blond stood and began to walk away, then hurried to follow him. "Katsuya?"

"J-just leave me alone, moneybags." He reached up to scrub at his eyes, unable to believe that he was actually about to shed tears over a jerk. "I d-don't need to put up with you!"

The brunet frowned and reached to grab his wrist. "Katsuya, what did I do?"

Katsuya grunted and tried to yank away, letting out a snarl when he realized that the king's grip was too strong to pull away from. "You want to fuck me, you pervert! You just want to use me and toss me out, just like everyone else-!" Finally wrenching his hand free, he turned to face him, growling in frustration. "I'm not going to be used, moneybags!" So saying, he turned to stomp away again.

"Katsuya—"

"I don't want to talk to you!"

Seto watched him go, brows furrowing together. He obviously needed to watch the blond more carefully to figure out how he ticked, otherwise he was just going to keep upsetting him. He… hadn't meant to make the younger teen cry. He didn't want to be the type of husband that made his wife cry on a daily basis, especially when he realized that the blond obviously didn't have very good self-esteem. It… made him feel like the scum of the earth. Especially since the other boy obviously didn't want to show weakness, so he'd run away and cry by himself—and he wouldn't be able to hold him, and apologize, and… try to comfort him. He was a horrible person for making such a beautiful, fragile creature anything but happy.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Katsuya sniffled and buried his face in a pillow, feeling very much like a teenage girl and hating himself for it, but he decided he was allowed to behave that way, since someone he liked (he didn't want to admit it, but he knew it was true) just wanted to use him for sex. That person had even put him in a dress, and spanked him, and… and had only wined and dined him for a chance under his skirt. He was hurt, and he only wished he could make Seto feel as badly as he did.

He jumped as he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned quickly, frantically scrubbing at his eyes. "H-huh?"

Yuugi frowned in concern. "Katsuya…? What's wrong?"

"N-nothing. It's stupid. Really." The blond forced a smile, though even he could tell it didn't look convincing. "Nothing to worry about, Yuug'."

The feline crossed his arms and frowned petulantly. "I'm not stupid, Katsuya! Tell me what's really bothering you!"

"It's just— …Seto… I… I thought he wanted to get to know me. …He just wanted to have sex with me," he answered softly, looking down at his lap.

Yuugi gasped softly. "That's horrible! So both Yami _and_ Seto are perverts! I had hoped it was just a Yami thing, but they must get it from each other!"

Katsuya nodded slightly, sadly. "Yes. They must."

"…You really want to get to know him, don't you, Katsuya?" the smaller boy asked quietly, and when the answer he got was another sad nod, he scowled. "I see. Then I'll be right back, Katsuya!"

"Wh-where are you going, Yuugi?" the blond asked nervously when he found the other boy marching toward the door.

"I'm gonna go talk to Seto!" the feline replied, before disappearing from sight.

Katsuya blinked for a moment, then groaned and covered his face as he fell back onto his pillows with another whimper.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Seto was more than a little surprised to find the miniature Yami waiting for him in the library, but he supposed he was just hiding from his friend's unwanted affections, so he went to sit at his desk with no more than a little nod. "Good evening."

"Humph!" Yuugi tossed his bangs out of his eyes, scowling. "What's so good about it when my friend's in his room, crying?"

The brunet winced at the information that his love interest was crying, but otherwise, he tried to keep his expression from changing. "Oh?"

"Don't act like you don't care, your Highness! You hurt his feelings and you know it! You treated him like a whore!" the feline exclaimed angrily, ears folding back in frustration. Turning to storm off, he added, "You jerk! And to think that Katsuya liked you and wanted to get to know you! Well, screw that! I'm helping him find Ryou and then they're leaving." He let out a yelp as he was suddenly yanked back, then hesitantly looked up at the brunet, suddenly realizing just… how puny he was compared to him.

Seto looked like a kid on Christmas morning, he was so happy. "Katsuya wants to get to know me?"

Yuugi was more than a little alarmed by how pleased the king seemed to be with the information. "…Yes…"

"Even though I hurt his feelings? He still wants to get to know me?"

"…I don't like where this conversation's heading…"

"Hot damn! I'll have him as my wife yet!"

Yuugi scowled and caught his cape as he tried to pass. "Hold on one minute, buster! I'm not going to let you hurt him again! We have to set some guidelines!"

Seto blinked in surprise, then turned toward him, confused. "Guidelines?"

"_Yes,_ guidelines! You really hurt Katsuya's feelings, and I _like_ him!"

"…What kind of guidelines?"

The feline frowned at him for a moment, then sighed and scratched his head thoughtfully. "Perhaps we should write this down. …Just so you can have a written reference, of course; I'm not going to watch you try and court him or anything."

The king sighed, then trudged over to his desk again, now looking like a petulant child being told he couldn't open his gifts until later in the morning. "Alright, fine."

Yuugi tilted his head and couldn't help a small, affectionate smile. He could tell that Seto was sincere about his liking for the blond; he just had problems showing it. …Of course, that just meant that he'd probably have a few more 'guidelines' than a regular person. "Okay. Let's get started."

.-.-.-.-.-.

Mokuba was surprised to say the least when he found his brother still in his nook in the library when he returned from courting the neighboring kingdom's princess. Seto preferred to retire early, so he could get up early. Also, he was studying a few sheets of paper, which was even more surprising; he got up early just so he could _finish_ his paperwork. Then, just before dinner, he'd take care of anything that had popped up while he was speaking with the people of the kingdom, and then he'd have supper and relax. Something must have been wrong.

Fearing the worst (like a war, or news that their cocoa bean crops weren't doing well), he stepped up to his brother's desk and asked, "Seto? Is something wrong?"

"What? No. Everything's fine. How was your date?" the brunet replied, not even looking up from his papers.

Mokuba frowned again. "…It was fun. She was cute and witty; I like her. …What are you reading?"

Seto snorted in annoyance. "The guidelines Yami's little _miniature_ set for me if I wanted to continue courting Katsuya. I want him as my wife, remember? Since Katsuya doesn't have any family, Yuugi has taken on that position. …He made me sign an agreement to follow these guidelines and actually kept a copy of it, too." He gave the papers a sour expression. "I'm trying to memorize them, so I don't have to keep looking back at them every time I try to have a conversation with him."

"May I see?" the younger boy asked, reaching slightly for the papers. When his brother grunted and waved him on, he took the papers and raised an eyebrow. "He's… very thorough."

"Outrageously so, yes."

_**1. NO MENTIONS OF SEX!**_

_It makes Katsuya feel awkward, and it seems as if you're trying to push him into it. He doesn't like it and it doesn't help your case. It makes him think you're a sex-hungry fiend just looking for a whore. Katsuya is not a whore. Any mentions of sex—__**if any**__—should be well-timed and made in good taste. As in, __**joking.**__ And make it clear you're joking._

_**2. NO TOUCHING!**_

_Any touching that occurs should be started by Katsuya. If he wants to be touched, he will let you know, in which case you __**may**__ touch, but never more than he allows. Let him touch you first if necessary, to get comfortable with being around you; he won't do anything sexual until he's completely comfortable with you and trusts you._

_**3. THREE FOOT RULE!**_

_Unless Katsuya makes the move to get closer, __**stay outside his personal bubble.**__ End of story—no ifs, ands, or buts._

_**4. ELASTIC CLAUSE**_

_As I have no other rules coming to mind right now—other than the basics of being polite and courteous, yada yada—I reserve the right to make up new rules to suit Katsuya's needs. If you disagree with any rule I may put in place, I have some __**NOT SO ELASTIC CLAWS**__._

So there weren't many rules, but the feline had gone on to list words that could be misconstrued as 'sexual' that he should avoid and forms of flirting that he was allowed. Outrageous.

"So you're going to try again, then?" Mokuba asked, raising an eyebrow, as he looked back up at his brother.

Seto snatched the papers back, scowling. "He _will_ be my wife!"

The younger boy rolled his eyes and drawled, "Yeah, uh… I saw your 'future wife' sneaking out to the garden."

"_What?_"

.-.-.-.-.-.

Katsuya rubbed his still slightly red nose and sniffled a little, coming to a stop in front of the beautiful orange roses that he'd had such a good conversation with Ka—Seto. …Whoever he was. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he had enjoyed the teasing, and the kisses. He even liked some of the conversations they'd had. It had been… it had been fun. At least, fun enough that he hadn't wanted to bash the other boy's face in the entire time.

He really wished that the brunet would learn to stop thinking with his dick and start thinking with his brain. That was one thing he found really sad—but still a bit funny; he wanted to keep this Seto nice, but he wanted him to think like Kaiba and not some sex-obsessed fiend.

He also wished that he didn't have a fluttery feeling whenever the king was being sweet, but the likelihood of either wishes coming true was close to zero.

Sighing quietly in disappointment, Katsuya reached up to trace the edge of one of the petals on a nearby rose. He gasped in surprise as a hand got his wrist and yanked him around only to find himself staring into angry blue eyes. "Ah-! K-Kai—Seto!"

"Do you know how _dangerous_ it is out here at night?" Seto hissed, then turned and began dragging him back toward the castle. "Get you fucking kidnapped by a wild dragon—_like I need the stress!_"

"D-dragons?" the blond asked softly, frowning, then scowled and dug his heels into the ground, yanking his hand free of the other man's grip. "Just who the hell do you think you are? I _said_ I didn't want to talk to you!" He yipped as something suddenly wrapped around his waist and yanked him away. "Eep!"

The black dragon that had hooked him looked him over with his sharp red eyes, nodded slightly, then let out a roar and took to the air again. The blond sighed and rested his chin on his hand. "Oh, help. Seto, please rescue me." Scowling, he shot the dragon a glare. "This is really inconvenient for me, you know! Hey! Listen to me when I'm yelling at you!"

Seto felt his eye twitch. Why was the younger boy so _calm_ about being kidnapped by a wild dragon? Was there something wrong with him? Sighing in annoyance, he turned and ran to the stables to get Kisara; he could only hope the large female could best the black dragon without hurting his future wife.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Katsuya normally didn't find staring contests that interesting, but ever since the dragon had landed next to the lake, there had been little to do. So he'd started a staring contest with the dragon. …The dragon was winning.

Currently, the dragon was curled up, his front legs spread before him much like a dog laying down would do. Katsuya himself was sitting about ten feet away, feet tucked up neatly so he wouldn't even risk the _chance_ of the dragon looking up his skirt, and his arms crossed over his chest as he frowned in concentration. He would win one of the games. He _would._

And that was how Seto and Kisara found them. The white dragon glanced up at her master and raised a scaly brow, as if asking, _'And you want __**this**__ for your mate?'_ Seto merely banged his head down against her hard scales. Trust the boy he was trying to woo to get in a fucking _staring contest_ with a _dragon._

The black dragon looked up at the white one abruptly, wings flattening docilely; he could tell that the female could easily beat him, and he wasn't intending to get hurt when he kidnapped the pretty boy. He just wanted some company for a while, and the blond had looked like he wanted company, looking so sad, and then so angry when the brunet had grabbed him. How was he supposed to know the other human would get offended if he rescued the blond from someone he obviously didn't want to be with!

Kisara blinked in surprise; most males—even the ones that recognized that she could kick their asses—had still tried to challenge her. This one was… admitting to being weaker? As her master slid from her back, she grinned a feral grin that had the black dragon trying to discreetly wriggle in the opposite direction.

Sighing, Seto walked over to the blond and offered him a hand. "I was worried about you. Did the dragon hurt you?"

Katsuya sighed and took it. "No, but it wouldn't let me win a game at _all._"

"…Pity." The brunet pulled the dress-clad boy to his feet and checked his appearance over for injuries, then nodded a little in relief. "Okay. Well, let's—"

A loud, startled roar cut him off, and both boys turned to find that Kisara had tackled the other dragon down and was currently nuzzling at the sheath hiding the black dragon's cock. Once it was out, she mounted the smaller dragon and began rutting against him.

It was with a sick sense of fascination that Katsuya stated, "Your dragon sure knows how to take initiative." It was like watching a train crash; it was horrible, but he couldn't bring himself to look away. …His eyes would bleed later for this, he was sure.

"You're all trying to make me have an _aneurism!_" Seto shouted, throwing his hands up in frustration. "I'm going to get so stressed that I'm going to either have a _heart attack_ or an _aneurism!_"

Ignoring the black dragon's frantic whines, the blond frowned and grabbed his sleeve. "How is this stressful? They're not hurting each other or anything. He didn't hurt me. What's wrong?"

The king snorted in annoyance and crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes at the smug-looking white dragon. "I'm not giving you any treats for this!" Kisara looked toward him and whined, pausing in her mating for a moment. When she saw that he wouldn't relent, she scowled at him before going back to humping the other dragon. The brunet scowled as well. "Oh, that's _really_ mature!"

The black dragon bleated pitifully, writhing beneath the female, before throwing his head back in a roar of completion. Letting his head loll to the side, he whimpered and tried to crawl out from under her, but she locked her thighs together, keeping him from moving.

Katsuya frowned, brows furrowing together in concern. "Oh, look at that. He's embarrassed."

"Bah. She's figuring out how to get the egg home on her own," Seto replied, crossing his arms and glowering at her.

Finally allowing the other dragon to squirm out from under her, Kisara threw her head back and let out a pained roar, body straining to push out the egg. The black dragon watched in concern, snuffling her neck soothingly, then looked down in surprise when he heard a wet 'plop.'

The blond human took a step back in horror. "Oh God, that's so gross!"

"You act as if you've never seen a dragon lay an egg before," the king stated, then turned to see his absolutely mortified expression. "Oh. You never have."

The male dragon sniffed at the egg for a moment, then grasped it between his front claws, looking up at the white dragon curiously and letting out soft murmurs of confusion. Kisara sniffed indignantly, then reached with her tail for the brunet to place him on her back. As an afterthought, she reached for the blond and placed him on her back as well, then turned to purr at the other dragon and twitch her wings.

Seto huffed and reached back for the other boy's hands. "Wrap your arms around me. Flying on a dragon's back is different from flying in the grasp of its tail."

Katsuya scowled at him but wrapped his arms around the brunet's waist nonetheless. "Fine. …What's she doing with her wings, anyway?"

"Inviting him to come to her 'den.'" The king growled in annoyance and crossed his arms. "I knew she'd be a pain when she grew up, but I didn't expect her to just claim a wild dragon like that."

The blond gasped and hugged the older teen tighter as the white dragon took off, terrified that he'd be knocked off her back. "Ah-!"

Seto blushed a little and looked down at the arms clinging to his waist, then hesitantly laid his hands on the other boy's. "Don't worry. I won't let you fall."

Katsuya frowned, opening his eyes slowly, then nodded a little and snuggled closer to him. "Okay." He promised himself to try not to be so snappy to the other boy after this. He'd only had his best interest in mind, after all. …He only hoped that they'd have more _real_ conversations after this.


	5. Lemonade, Not So Easy, Actually

Author's Note: Wait 'til you see Katsuya's outfit this time! XD Just imagine the thread is blue in the pants. Oh, and imagine the shirt. Because it's just a shirt.

http : / / www . cosmates . jp / shop / images / products / 1SP00006 . jpg

http : / / www . cosmates . jp / shop / images / products / g426 _ big . jpg

**Katsuya's Adventures in Wonderland**

_**Lemonade—Not So Easy, Actually**_

Katsuya hadn't really believed Yuugi when he'd said that Ka—Seto would behave. He was surprised, however, when he went to the dining room to have breakfast the next morning and didn't receive any lewd comments. He eyed the brunet for a moment suspiciously. When he found the older boy merely gazing back, raising an eyebrow expectantly, he sat down, pleased with the fact that—though he was still wearing panties with ruffles on them—he _was_ wearing pants and a shirt.

The pants were different, more like a pair of shorts with legs attached to them by a belt. But, they were cute, if he didn't dwell on it too long. And they were _pants._ He'd also been given a powder blue t-shirt, and a mesh tank top to put over it. As always, his Converse were faithfully on his feet.

And he could see Seto drooling, _dying_ to say something. He sort of wished he would, actually, because he felt a little self-conscious, and having some flattery would help. But then the brunet was looking away, the bright sparkle in his eyes going dull, and he murmured a listless 'good morning, Katsuya.'

Wrong. Wrong wrong wrong.

Even Mokuba looked alarmed by this change.

Halfway through breakfast had the brunet looking at him and opening his mouth, as if to say something. Katsuya leaned forward expectantly, desperate to hear something—_anything_—from his mouth, but then the older boy closed his mouth, sighed, and looked away again.

Katsuya hated to admit it, but… he sort of missed the old Seto. At least with _that_ Seto, they had a _chance_ of having a decent conversation. How were they supposed to have a conversation if Seto couldn't spit anything out? This happened a few more times before Seto finally gave up, letting his head slam onto the table with a defeated thud.

The blond frowned and brought a hand up to nervously play with his hair, casting around for a neutral topic, then smiled brightly. "So! How are Kisara and the wild dragon getting along?"

Seto looked up at him for a moment, then smiled a little. "Fine. They're squabbling over where to put the egg, but they agree to shoo the stable hands away when they try to put the egg with the others. They want to take care of their own egg."

"Oh, good." The blond tilted his head, then smiled again. "I think his name is Akai."

"…How do you figure?" Both royals raised their eyebrows.

Katsuya scratched the back of his head. "Well, he mumbled a lot, but I think I remember hearing that Akai was his name." When the two just blinked at him, he scowled and crossed his arms, huffing. "Fine, never mind then."

"…So Princess Shizuka said she wanted to meet Katsuya," Mokuba stated, turning to look at the brunet as if nothing had occurred. "She said she wanted to meet what could possibly be her 'sister-in-law.' So she's coming by today."

"Shizuka-! _Sister-in-law!_" The blond was horrified, and didn't know which subject to tackle first. His sister was a princess but wasn't his sister? Shizuka didn't know him? And what was this about a sister-in-law? He wasn't married to either Kaiba and he wasn't a _girl_—

"…Did Seto not tell you that he wants you as his wife?" the younger boy asked after a few moments, puzzled. "I mean… Seriously. He doesn't just have sex. He wishes he did sometimes, but he doesn't." His brows furrowed together. "Did he really not tell you that he planned to marry you?"

Katsuya jerked his head back to the brunet just in time to see his head meet the table again. "And when were you planning on telling me _that_, you bastard!"

Seto peeked up at him, having the good grace to blush a little. "…Eventually…"

"And you're telling me that she's coming _today_ to meet me even though I had _no_ idea I was being 'courted' or 'wooed' or what-the-hell-ever by this bastard!"

"Um… Yes," Mokuba replied, deciding that being honest would be easier than trying to make up an excuse. "She'll be here for tea. I… I'm gonna go look up a good lemonade recipe," he added, standing.

The blond had a hard time understanding _that_ more than anything else. "…A what recipe?"

Sighing, Seto sat up straight, running a hand through his hair wearily. He just knew that he was going to get it from the blond later on. "Princess Shizuka prefers lemonade over tea. We have yet to find a good lemonade recipe. She always spits it back out before she can swallow it; it's either too sour or too sweet."

"You just put in—Oh my _Gawd_." Rolling his eyes in pity, Katsuya stood as well. "Come on. I'll teach you. I swear, you must be making it more difficult than it really is."

"You know how to make lemonade?" Mokuba asked hopefully, then looked up at his brother adoringly, as if to say, _'This should be your wife and you should __**never**__ let him go!'_

"Yeah, it's not that hard." He placed his hands on his hips and raised a brow. "Is one of you going to show me to the kitchen, or did you expect me to make it out of thin air?"

"Oh. …Right."

The blond rolled his eyes and followed them toward the kitchen, shaking his head in exasperation. These two were truly hopeless; they needed every bit of help they could get. "Does she like pink lemonade? Because I know a good pink lemonade recipe too—"

"Oh thank _God!_" Mokuba cried, spinning around to hug him tightly. "It's her favorite but she said to focus on regular lemonade before we tried to do pink!"

Katsuya blinked for a moment, stunned, before frowning and patting him on the head. "Um… You know, for lemonade, you need six cups of lemon juice, six cups of cold water, and a cup of sugar, right? I mean… All you do is start with water and toss in some lemon juice and sugar until it doesn't taste too sweet or sour while keeping both parts lemon and water equal."

"There's a reason we have other people cook for us," Seto replied, pushing the door to the kitchen open and allowing the other boys inside first. "I didn't actually think it was possible to burn water until Mokuba and I succeeded at doing so."

"You really—No, no, I don't want to know," the blond sighed, then frowned and looked around. Realizing that there was too much food and too many pots, pans, and pitchers to even _begin_ to wander through, he gently tapped a blue kangaroo on the shoulder, smiling politely when it turned its attention to him. "Hello. Would you mind getting some things together for me so I can show their highnesses how to make pink lemonade?"

The kangaroo raised its brows in surprise, but then it nodded, waiting patiently for the list. "Yes, sir."

"Thanks. I'd like some pitchers, water, grenadine syrup, lemons, and sugar, please. And, um… could you gather a lot? I have a feeling we're going to need it…" he added softly, just so the two royals couldn't hear.

The kangaroo smiled and nodded again before hopping off to gather said supplies.

Smiling, Katsuya turned back to the two other humans and clapped his hands together. "Okay! So I'm going to teach you guys how to make it, and then you're going to make your own!" When they only met this information with blank stares, he scowled and placed his hands on his hips. "How do you expect to _woo_ her if you don't show you care about her enough to make it _for_ her? That's going to be what will earn you points! It won't matter if it even tastes good or not, as long as you _tried!_"

"And why should we believe that?" Mokuba asked suspiciously, crossing his arms.

The blond huffed and crossed his arms as well, turning his back on them. "Well if you _don't_ want to trust me then _fine._ Never mind that I can speak from experience because of my female friends or my little sister, or my own _personal_ preference, which is basically the same as theirs because I'm not some rude _bitch_—"

"It sounds _wonderful,_ Katsuya," Seto cut in, a regretful frown forming on his face. "And I'd love to join you for the lesson—God knows I need to learn to be able to make _something_ without blowing up the stove—but I've got papers I need to attend to. Apparently some of the crops aren't doing well on the outskirts of the kingdom and—" He cut himself off as the blond got directly in his face, suddenly fearing for his life.

Katsuya narrowed his eyes at him, hands back on his hips, as he tried to see whether the brunet was telling the truth or making an excuse. After a few more moments, he leaned back, crossing his arms in a huff. "Fine, but you better be there for tea! And if I find out you're lying, I'm going to kick your ass from here to Timbuktu!" Seeing that the kangaroo had returned—along with a marigold-colored swan—with the needed ingredients, he turned to help them set the things up on the counter.

The two brothers glanced at each other in confusion, softly questioning, "…Timbuktu?"

.-.-.-.-.-.

"…Oh my God. Mokuba's making something? And he's _not_ leaving the kitchen in ruins?"

Mokuba shot the intruder a dirty look, taking his eyes off of the measuring spoon and syrup he was holding. "Shut _up,_ Oto—_Shit!_" He groaned as the spoon overflowed and his third try at pink lemonade turned a dark pink—too dark. "Oh, man!"

"No, no, it's okay," Katsuya cut in, stirring the mixture, then turned a scowl on the black haired-boy whom he'd been sort of glad he hadn't seen at all during his visit. "And just what the fuck are _you?_"

Otogi blinked, then smirked, his cat ears twitching as his tail began to swing from side to side. "Never seen a tomcat before, babe?"

"If you call me babe one more time I'm going to rip your fucking ears out," the blond hissed; ever since the occasion in the real world when he'd been forced into a dog suit, he and Otogi had never really gotten along. Having _this_ Otogi hitting on him really pissed him off.

The feline seemed aware of this fact and chuckled nervously, holding his hands up defensively. "Hey, no need to get so riled; I was just kidding."

"…This is the guy Seto's trying to woo into being his wife," Mokuba explained grudgingly. He was still annoyed. That batch of lemonade had looked so _promising!_

Katsuya took a sip of the lemonade, then made a small face. "Mmn, too pink."

This seemed to interest the other older teen, and he stepped forward to give the lemonade a curious sniff. "My Honda likes his lemonade pinker than most people. May I try it?"

Otogi's Honda? …Wouldn't the real-world Honda have loved that?

Sighing, the blond allowed him to take a sip, tilting his head as the feline took a few minutes smacking his lips and testing a few more sips. "…Well?"

"Yeah, I think Honda will like it," Otogi finally replied, looking up at him. "You don't mind if I take this, right? Honda's busy looking after the kittens, so I'll have to take it to him."

"Kittens?" The human was nearly beside himself. "When did-?"

The raven-haired teen's chest swelled with pride. "Three perfect little kittens; two boys and one girl. Three weeks ago. Honda's been a real trooper, and the perfect mama."

…This version of Wonderland was just too fucking weird. Katsuya swore that if any of his other friends got pregnant, he was finding a way to make himself wake up as soon as possible.

Otogi waved, looking more cheerful than when he'd arrived. "Well, I'll take this and go then. I'd actually come for some cake, but I'm sure Honda will like this treat a lot better. We'll bring the kittens to visit soon!"

"Glad I could help," Mokuba mumbled, sitting down on a stool in discouragement. "I'm _never_ going to be able to make this, Katsuya."

Katsuya sighed and crossed his arms, frowning. "You would've gotten it right if Otogi hadn't interrupted. Just give it another try, okay?" he asked softly, reaching out to give the younger boy's shoulder a squeeze. "Come on, Mokuba; you're not doing that badly."

"But I _am_ doing badly!" the younger boy retorted angrily, standing up and jerking away from him. "I should just face the facts that destiny doesn't want me to have Princess Shizuka and realize that she's meant for Prince Insector!"

The blond's eye twitched. Prince Insector? As in _Haga Inesctor?_ Mokuba was going to leave his sweet, innocent little sister to be groped and raped by that… that pervert bug kid with glasses way too big for his FACE? Because of some stupid _LEMONADE?_

Mokuba yelped as the older boy caught the lapels of his shirt and yanked him closer until they were face to face, golden eyes glowing with anger. "K-K-Katsuya?"

"It's. Lemonade," Katsuya hissed, nearly growling at the prince in fury. "You're getting upset over _lemonade._ Giving up because of _lemonade,_ Mokuba?"

Hearing it like that _did_ make it sound sort of silly… Blushing a little, the younger boy reached up to grab the blond's hands. "J-just calm down, Katsuya! I'm okay now; I'll try again!"

"You're damned _right_ you're going to try again," the older boy snarled, releasing him to stumble against the counter. "And you're going to _keep_ trying until your freaking lemonade is _perfect!_ You got me?"

Mokuba nodded quickly, eyes wide, before he hurriedly moved to make another pitcher. "Yes, sir."

Katsuya took a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself down. When that didn't work, he sighed and turned to leave. "Mokuba, I'm going on a walk. I'll be back to check on you in fifteen minutes."

"O-okay."

Considering that the only places he could really navigate were the dining hall and the garden, Katsuya thought it was a no-brainer and went out into the garden. He was surprised, however, when he got to the roses and found Seto already there. Ducking back behind a bush quickly, he scowled, believing that the brunet was just skipping out on a cooking lesson, but it quickly faded to a frown when he saw the sad expression on the other boy's face. …Well, he didn't want to be found out, and he was certain that if he went for the door again, Seto would surely see him, so he set himself down for some serious accidental eavesdropping.

Seto sighed quietly and gently traced the edges of one of the sundowner blossom's petals, then gently plucked it off and went to go sit down on the stone bench where he'd spanked his intended. Leaning his elbows on his knees, he inspected the flower, then went back to tracing the edges of its petals. "You know, I don't think I'll ever marry."

Katsuya jumped as the brunet was answered by a confused whine, then looked up, shocked to find the wild dragon—Akai, as he'd dubbed him—sitting just outside the garden, head peeking up above some hedges. He'd been the one to answer the brunet.

The king looked up at him and smiled sadly. "I know Katsuya's a wonderful person. You don't need to tell me that." His smile, which had been so painful to begin with, began to fade into a bitter frown. "He said he thought you mumbled that your name was Akai. So that's what I'll call you, okay?"

Akai whined his agreement, unsure of why the man looked so sad.

Seto looked down at the flower still held in his hand. "…I… I just want someone to care for, and to care for me. But I don't think Katsuya's that person. He… he needs someone better for him." When the dragon keened in disapproval, the brunet smirked bitterly and looked up at him. "Please, Akai. I've already alienated him with my dirty talking. When I _did_ have the chance to get closer to him this morning, I had to decline because I had paperwork. I don't want to have to do that to him after we marry. So I just won't marry at all. Katsuya will find someone better, and I'll just drown my sorrows and regret in some sort of drink."

The dragon scowled then, and snorted out some smoke.

"I know, I know. Horrible habit." Standing, the brunet gave the rose one last look, then let his hand fall to his side as he looked up at the black dragon. "Fine. I'll do something else. But it's not my fault if that something else is worse than alcoholism."

Katsuya watched in horror as the rose slipped from the king's fingers, and then he turned and walked away, toward the door leading into the castle, without a second glance to the fallen flower. He'd had no idea Seto felt that way. He'd understood—kings had duties, so he couldn't be having fun all the time. He'd just had no idea he'd felt so… guilty about it.

…Perhaps he'd had Seto figured all wrong.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Katsuya hadn't been particularly homesick yet. All of his friends had been in Wonderland—even if he didn't get to see them often—but he felt a pang of homesickness as soon as Princess Shizuka, his adorable little sister, stepped out into the garden to have 'tea' with them. He'd stood to give her a hug, but when she merely eyed him as he began out of his seat, instead of coming at him ready to glomp, his heart had broken. This Shizuka didn't know him. His baby sister wasn't his baby sister here.

Seto frowned as he saw tears well up in the blond's eyes, but then they were gone, carefully masked behind a bright smile as he stood and offered the strawberry-blonde his hand. "Katsuya…?"

"It's a pleasure meeting you, Princess." The blond smiled, trying to keep the tears out of his smile and voice.

Shizuka smiled as well. "Please, call me Shizuka."

"Okay, Shizuka."

Once they were all introduced and all settled with a glass of pink lemonade, the fell into easy conversation—most of which Katsuya didn't care for. It was kingdom-ish stuff, like taxes, or lands, or how to deal with the people of their kingdoms. He found it boring quite fast, and so he sat back in his seat, sipped his lemonade, and pondered just what exactly he was going to yell at Seto later for planning on marrying him and trying to court him without actually _telling_ him he was going to court him. Seriously, he had made it seem just like sex, but he was actually thinking about commitment! What the hell, man?

"Katsuya, are you okay? You look angry," Shizuka stated hesitantly, frowning.

Katsuya narrowed his eyes and looked up at Seto. "'m fine. Just thinking about something I want to say to Seto later."

The younger couple had to take a double-take. Was… was Seto _sweating_ a little? And looking _nervous?_

Smiling sweetly, the blond sat up straight, resting his drink in his lap. "So! What do you think of the lemonade, Shizuka?"

Blinking at the abrupt change, it took her a moment before she smiled again and nodded. "It's very good! I really hadn't expected anything this nice!"

"Yeah, and it only took Mokuba five tries!" Katsuya added, and grinned madly when the raven-haired teen blushed and glared at him.

Shizuka gasped in surprise, then turned toward him, blushing as well. "You made this, Mokuba? That's so sweet!" And, in a typical 'Jounouchi' fashion (she _was_ formerly a Jounouchi before she and her mother changed their names to Kawai), threw her arms around the prince's neck to plant a kiss on his cheek.

"See? What'd I tell you?" the blond answered, smiling to himself as he sank back in his seat. "And you didn't want to believe me!"

"…You're right," Seto stated softly, unable to help a smile, then reached out to brush his fingers against the smaller teen's cheek.

Katsuya blushed a little and looked down at his lap again, reaching up to catch the brunet's hand. Feeling the hand stiffen, he smiled slightly and closed his eyes, lacing fingers with him. "It would be nice if you admitted it more often."

The brunet blinked in surprise, then smiled and leaned back in his seat, lifting their hands to kiss the back of the other boy's before letting them hand between them. "I'll keep that in mind," he replied, letting his eyes drift closed as well.

Shizuka and Mokuba glanced at each other, then tried to smother their giggles before they could disturb the older boys.

Katsuya would miss this. He'd miss being so companionable with Seto. So he'd savor it while he could.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Katsuya blinked in surprise, then smiled. "Hey, Yuugi. Hiding from Yami again?"

Yuugi shrugged and looked up him, smiling a little. "I see you're getting along with Seto better."

"Yeah. He's actually pretty nice when he's not being a totally perverted bastard," the blond replied, walking over to the bed while stripping off his shirt and mesh top.

"_Jounouchi!_

The blond let out a yelp as something collided with his waist, then turned in confusion. "Hey— Ryou!"

"You're not supposed to _be_ here!" The albino rabbit nibbled his bottom lip nervously, then looked up at him. "We need to get you out of here as soon as possible!"

"But… why?" Katsuya asked in confusion. He _did_ want to go home, but he wanted to spend a little more time with Seto.

Ryou sprang back, eyes wide in horror. "Are you insane?" He began flailing his arms about frantically as his legs got him pacing the room. "If you become too attached to us here, you'll want to stay here, which means you'll never wake up in your world, which means you'll fall into a coma there, which means you'll stay asleep there as you live your life here until you die here, then you'll die in the real world, and _then_ your _real_ versions of us will never know what happened! You'll just have fallen asleep and never woken up! They'll worry! They'll panic! They'll be _in pain!_"

The blond frowned. "Wait, so what are you saying?"

"You need to go home!" the younger boy shouted, spinning toward him. "As soon as possible."

Katsuya flinched back, then bit his bottom lip and looked down at his feet. "…I… I want to say goodbye t' Seto first. Please?"

Ryou sighed, then nodded slowly. "Fine. Tomorrow night, you go home. I'll be waiting in here for you."

"Okay."

Yuugi frowned and tilted his head, finally making himself part of the conversation. "What are you guys talking about?"

The blond smiled sadly. "It's a long story. Ryou will explain it to you tomorrow, after I'm gone."

The feline didn't look happy, but he nodded. "Okay."

Ryou sighed again, then looked at him and jerked his head. "Let's go, Yuugi. I think Jounouchi wants to be alone."

"…Okay…" Yuugi paused, then turned and gave the blond a tight hug. "I'll be here tomorrow night to say goodbye, too!"

Katsuya hugged him back just as tight, fighting to keep his tears in check. It was for the best. Really. He needed to get back to his real friends, no matter how much he liked everyone here in Wonderland.

No matter how much the voice he tried to ruthlessly squash whispered how being married to Seto wouldn't be so bad.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Seto smiled vaguely and flexed his fingers, still remembering the feel of having the blond's hand clasped in his. He liked holding hands with him. His smile began to fade, however, when he remembered the expression on Katsuya's face when he met Shizuka. He'd looked so sad, so… broken. He felt his heart twinge at the reminder of the expression.

He'd have to talk to Katsuya about that tomorrow at dinner. Unfortunately, he'd be going through the kingdom to check on some things, leaving the blond on his own for most of the day. He only hoped it wouldn't piss the other boy off.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Oh! BTW: Grenadine syrup is syrup used to make pink lemonade and other various drinks (like cocktails, because of the red color). It's used mostly for color and as a sweetener. It's a strong syrup made from red currants and pomegranates.

Prepare for AAAAAAANGST next chapter kthnxbye.


	6. Dragged Out Angst

Author's Note: ZOMG! Okay, so there's only like two more chapters after this, srsly. Maybe three, if I feel like it. But this story is drawing to a _close_ my friends. I tried to make this chapter as angsty as possible, but I don't know how well I did that. Oh, and it may seem like they're randomly just jumping into sex (no actual lemon scene in this, so you don't have to worry. **:**D), but just keep in mind that Katsuya knows he's never going to get it in the real world, so he feels he should at least have it in his dreams. …Oh, and it's easier to say 'goodbye' to someone when they're unconscious.

**Katsuya's Adventures in Wonderland**

_**Dragged Out Angst**_

To say he was disappointed would be an understatement, and Katsuya was horrified to learn just how much he _dreaded_ going back to his world, because there, he wouldn't be able to talk with Seto, or tease with Seto, or… or even _be_ with Seto. It was worse when he heard that Seto wasn't there, that he'd left early that morning and wasn't expected back until supper time.

It sort of hurt. Seto… Seto could have told him he wouldn't be there the next day. That way he could have gone the night before, so he wouldn't have to agonize over how he could ever… how he was going say goodbye to Seto without hurting him.

He was tempted to go find Ryou, so he could go home now, so he wouldn't have to look into those beautiful blue eyes, to see the infatuation the man had for him, to see the pain when he said goodbye. Because this Seto liked him, wanted to _marry_ him—even if he wasn't quite sure why.

Why did he even care so much? It was just a dream, these people didn't actually exist. Well, technically they did, but their counterparts weren't like that—the real Kaiba Seto wouldn't want to marry him. The real Muto Yuugi wouldn't shy away from the real Yami's touches. …Though… the real Ryou could usually be seen running frantically away from the real Bakura. And Marik _was_ known to do odd things, so wearing a giant green hat wasn't too out there.

Why were the psycho people the only ones in character here?

Katsuya sighed and gently prodded one of the larger sundowner blossoms, trying to find some sort of way to amuse himself. He'd decided that he at least _had_ to say goodbye to Seto, even if he had as of yet to figure out how. …He could probably be figuring that out right now, but he was too depressed to face his current problem.

He let out a shriek as something dipped its head to take a bite out of the rosebush beside him and turned quickly, eyes wide in horror. The horror soon faded when he saw what it was. "_Akai!_ What the _hell,_ man?" He glanced at the rosebush, then back up at the still-chewing dragon. "Did you just-? How could you-! _Ouch!_"

Akai seemed unbothered by the fact that he had just taken a fairly large chunk out of a rosebush. But, seconds later, he was spitting out the petals as flames began licking at the wood and thorns still within his mouth, leaving the petals to flutter to the ground like a gentle rain.

Katsuya didn't know whether to be disgusted by the fact that petals that had been in a dragon's mouth were landing on him or whether he should be in awe that the dragon had such a skilled mouth and had decided to use it to try and cheer him up. After a few moments of stunned staring, he began to laugh, despite the thoughts of _'ew, dragon germs'_ and _'that was so fucking weird!'_

The dragon seemed pleased with this, and he leaned down to nuzzle the blond gently. The human laughed again and hugged the black dragon's muzzle, laying a soft, gentle kiss between his eyes. "Thanks, Akai. You're so sweet."

Akai began to purr and nuzzled closer to him, tongue poking out to lick him, before he pulled back and began trotting away. He returned only a few moments later, rolling the rather large egg toward him.

Katsuya was immediately horrified. "Does Kisara know you took that! Is she going to kill me when she finds out it's gone? I don't want to die, man!"

The dragon scowled, then reached out and gently swatted him toward the egg. However, 'gentle' was only gentle to a dragon, so the blond suddenly found himself up close and personal with the egg—actually, he was surprised he didn't make a 'splat' sound. Peeling himself away from the egg, the boy blinked in surprise, then smiled and hugged the egg.

"It's warm!"

Akai smiled brightly, purring again, then leaned down to lick the side of the human's face affectionately. He jumped when he heard an infuriated roar, then turned, frowning, to find a very upset white dragon storming toward him.

Katsuya's smile immediately fell, and he huddled back behind the egg, eyes widening as Kisara stomped toward them. _'Oh God I'm gonna die I'm gonna die I'm gonna __**die.**__'_

The white dragon let out an angry screech and curled her wings back threateningly, getting ready to loose a burst of white lightning, only to let out a slightly comical squawk when she felt something slap against her rump. Turning, she was surprised to find that her mate had spanked her with his tail. …Then she got annoyed.

Akai scowled when she turned her attention back to the human and gave her rump another slap, growling warningly. He liked this human. This human was lonely, just like he'd been. He didn't want that human hurt, especially when he was being so sweet to his egg. When she tried for a third time, he slapped her rump yet again and growled. She turned toward him, then huffed and sat down, letting out a rumble of disapproval before he leaned over and nuzzled her. Despite herself, she began to purr.

Katsuya hesitated before peeking up at them again, hesitantly edging out from behind the egg. When the white dragon merely snorted at him, he smiled a little and stepped out further. "Hey. …Did you know that Akai can take a bite out of a rose bush and spit out just the petals?"

Kisara blinked at him, then turned her gaze on her mate, tilting her head skeptically. When the black dragon merely began to purr again, she smirked, then lunged at him. Akai began to squeal and squirm wildly in distress.

Sighing, Katsuya rolled his eyes, then turned to the egg and crossed his arms, frowning. "Looks like you're going to get some little brothers and sisters, huh?" He didn't expect the egg to respond. …It didn't. Trying to ignore the sounds behind him of the two dragons mating again, he reached out to gently rub the warm shell. "Seto's so lucky. He gets all of you for companionship and I… I got nothing. Well, I got my friends, but…" He puffed out a breath of air. "…Friendship is different."

He nibbled his bottom lip for a moment, then looked toward the row of rosebushes. "…Maybe I shouldn't 've told your mama how good Akai is with his mouth."

.-.-.-.-.-.

He was going to _go out of his mind._

Katsuya groaned and sat down on his bed heavily. He'd finished lunch about an hour and a half prior, and he'd been visited by Ryou, whom had gently but firmly reminded him about going home that night. …And then the white rabbit had taken off running, and the March Hare Bakura had streaked in and chased after him, cackling. He decided that he wasn't going to see Ryou for the rest of the day. Then, he'd wandered the castle for a while until he found his room.

Hugging his knees to his chest, he sighed and bit his bottom lip. He hadn't realized when he'd decided to wait this morning just how _long_ that wait was going to be. Sure, realistically he realized that he'd be waiting until supper, but for some reason, he hadn't thought that the wait would be so long. He really wished he could do something to pass his time, but he had no idea what to do. He felt so lonely and… worthless. He wasn't doing anything to help anyone, after all; he was just sitting there like a bump on a log.

'_I have never wanted to disappear as much as I do right now.'_ Wonderland's Seto was _kind,_ wanted to _marry_ him. He wanted to take him to his room and caress him, touch him, kiss him, and please him, make him feel as if he had worth. The real Seto… He would never want to do that. He would only show him how much worth he _didn't_ have.

Should he really stay to say goodbye? It wasn't as if they were real people. They'd just disappear as soon as he woke up, as if they never existed. So why should he stay to say goodbye to something—someone—that didn't exist? What did he have to worry about, huh? It wasn't as if they were going to meet again.

So why did he want to cry so badly?

Lunch was sitting heavily in his stomach, and he felt the urge to vomit, but he resolutely kept his food down. He just needed to think about something else. He had to keep his mind off of sexy brunets with intense blue eyes that could easily sweep him off his feet and carry him away. …Okay, now that just wasn't helping. Fine, he'd think about the two dragons outside, and how they were loyal and good companions, and how they'd be able to take care of Seto after he was—

"_AAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!_" Falling onto his back, Katsuya dug his fingers into his hair in frustration and groaned loudly. "Bastard! Why can't I just get you out of my head?"

"Katsuya?" There was a knock on the door. "Katsuya, the king is back. He wishes to see you."

Gasping softly, the blond sat up, then quickly rubbed at his eyes, trying to dispel the tears that had gathered earlier. "O-okay! Tell him… tell him I'll be right there!" He paused, then frowned. "Wait. Where's he going to be?"

"I was told to escort you up to him. He's in the library."

"Ah. O-okay. Just… just a second!"

He decided that he should leave in the same clothes he came in. As much as he was loathe doing so, it just felt right to go the same way he came. So, he began to strip himself of the pants and shirt. Once he'd gotten the dress back on, he sighed and glared at it, then went to the door to find a pastel green dog waiting for him, tail wagging idly. Seeing that he was ready, she turned and began walking away.

Katsuya sighed again and moved to follow. "Thanks."

"You're welcome. That dress looks very nice on you, by the way."

He felt his eye twitch, but accepted the compliment and decided that silence was the way to go about the walk. Though he had to wonder… why was the library so far away?

.-.-.-.-.-.

Seto looked his nails over idly, frowning, before glancing up as someone cleared his throat. "Yami? What is it?"

"You're back earlier than usual," the feline commented, smirking. "Is there any particular reason?"

"I got worried. I don't know why." The brunet scowled. "Now get lost, because we're talking about private things."

Yami raised an eyebrow. "Somehow I doubt that that's _all_ you're going to do."

The king nodded. "Yes, I find he's more willing to engage in physical contact if no one else is there to see him." He waved his friend away. "I saw Yuugi heading toward the gardens." And like that, the feline was off like a shot.

Seto rolled his eyes. His friends really had one-track minds. If they stopped to think about it, they might be able to figure out _why_ their lovers (or attempted lovers) were running the hell away whenever they saw them. Jeez.

He looked up when he heard the door open again, eyes immediately falling to the long pale legs coming toward him. Long, pale, muscular legs. Legs that he could imagine over his shoulders or around his waist, flexing with each inward thrust he took. Calves that he would love to nibble and thighs he would love to lick and suck.

Hearing a soft, polite cough, he tore his eyes away from the sinful legs to the green dog, raising an eyebrow. "Hmm?"

She scowled at him. "I just thought it was highly inappropriate that you asked for Katsuya to be brought up and you haven't said anything. You've only made him nervous and embarrassed, just so you know."

Seto looked to the blond's face quickly, blushing a little when he saw the scarlet cheeks and golden eyes aimed at sneaker-clad feet. Coughing nervously, he hurriedly looked away. "Ah, I'm… sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

The dog narrowed her eyes at him, then bowed and took her leave. "Good day, sir."

This was followed by a tense silence.

Sighing, the brunet opened his mouth to speak, only to get cut off by the younger boy's rushed, "Can we go to your room!"

Seto blinked, stunned, then frowned in confusion. "You'd… like to see my room?"

"Yes! No! Well—I just figured—it's going to be more private there, right?" Katsuya asked, blushing a little more as he anxiously pulled at his skirt. "I… I'd like to be private!"

The king raised an eyebrow, still a little confused. "…I… suppose…"

"Great! Let's go there now!" the blond exclaimed, grabbing the older boy's hands and pulling lightly. "Please!"

"…Okay…" To say he was a little nervous was an understatement. He'd signed a contract with Yuugi, and now Katsuya was asking to see his bedroom while he was wearing a dress. He didn't know if he'd be able to keep from ravishing the younger boy against the wall or on his bed in those conditions.

The trip to Seto's room was relatively short, but the blond was incredibly pushy and impatient. Seto didn't know whether he should be flattered or worried. He couldn't help but wonder why the younger boy was so anxious now.

Sighing, Seto pushed the door to his room open. "Well, Katsuya, this is my room."

Katsuya spared the room a glance before tugging the king over to his very large bed. "Yeah, yeah, very nice."

The brunet frowned in confusion and grabbed his shoulders. "Katsuya, what's—"

The younger boy turned toward him swiftly, eyes on the ground as his shoulders began to shake. "Seto, I'm sorry. I just… I'm so _sorry._"

Katsuya didn't want to cry. He hadn't cried all day; he'd been doing so well! But now that he was here and he couldn't do the one thing he wanted, and had to do the thing he most didn't want to do, he felt overwhelmed. He knew that every day the real Kaiba taunted him, he'd think of this Seto and just want to cry. He would always regret not getting the affection, the care that this Seto would give him. And he desperately didn't want to say goodbye.

Seto gasped as the blond burst into tears, then hurriedly pulled the younger boy to his chest, holding him there tightly as he sobbed. "Katsuya-! I— What— How—" He was completely at a loss. The boy he intended for his wife was hurting, and he was helpless—He was a genius, so why wasn't his brain functioning? "K-Katsuya—"

"I don't wanna— S-Seto, could you please—" The blond sniffled and looked up at him. "K-k-kiss me? Please? One last time-!"

The king didn't know what he meant by 'one last time,' but he could certainly give him a kiss if he wanted it, especially if it had the power to make him stop crying. Dipping his head, he caught the blond's soft lips in a sweet kiss. When the smaller boy gasped, he thrust his tongue into his mouth, taking the time to thoroughly map out the new area he was allowed to explore before trying to bring the blond's tongue up to play with his.

Katsuya moaned softly and wrapped his arms around the king's neck, lifting his leg to curl around his waist as well. The brunet's hand slid down to hook beneath his thigh, rubbing the flesh beneath it before sliding his hand further upward to cup his ass cheek and squeeze it. When he mewled his approval, he suddenly felt himself being turned quickly, then pressed into the bed, and he realized belatedly that he had practically just given a horny bastard the 'go ahead.' But he couldn't really bring himself to care.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Katsuya's eyes fluttered open slowly. He tried to remember where he was, and why his back hurt. But then he remembered—dark, lusty blue eyes; hot, sweaty skin; the death grip on his knees and the slap of skin against skin—and he realized he had to go now. Tears beginning anew, he sat up straight and swang his legs over the side of the bed. After a few more seconds, he sniffled and slid onto his feet, bending over despite how much it hurt to pick up his clothes. Only when he'd checked to make sure he had everything five items, he turned back to the still form on the bed.

He would miss this Seto. He'd shed tears over a dream. How pathetic was he?

Sighing, Katsuya made his way back over to the bed, then leaned over so his lips were hovering over the brunet's face. "I'll miss you. I'll miss ya _so_ much. Ya don't even know. I'm so sorry, Seto. Goodbye." Pressing his lips to the other boy's cheek one last time, he let out a shuddering breath, then turned to leave the room to go find his own, being careful to avoid the maids and other servants.

When he arrived to his room again, Ryou was there, looking very huffy indeed. Yuugi was there too, looking just as teary as he felt. The feline sobbed and rushed forward to hug him, despite the fact that he was naked and holding his clothes in his hands. "I'm gonna _miss yooooou!_"

Katsuya hugged him back and nuzzled the top of his head, then whispered, "Let's not make this anymore painful than it has to be, Yuug'. I'm just going to get dressed and go home. Won't take you long t' forget me."

Yuugi stepped back quickly and nodded, biting his bottom lip to keep from sobbing his heart out. "Yeah. Okay. That sounds best."

"Just… try to hurry," Ryou mumbled, looking away. He didn't want to see how much pain the blond was in, just because of him. But he needed to go, so it shouldn't be his fault!

The blond dressed himself again quickly, wiped his face, then crossed his arms and nodded. "Okay. I'm ready to go now."

The rabbit nodded slightly and reached out to grab one of his hands. He knew it would help him. "Let's go then."

The trio left the room with a subdued atmosphere, holding hands in an attempt to try to make each other feel better. For the most part, they went unnoticed, but for a few maids that sent them some funny looks. Until they reached the doors that would lead outside, where they were found by the people they had hoped against _hope_ not to meet.

"Katsuya?"

Katsuya gasped and turned quickly, horrified that the other man had found him before he'd gotten away. "Seto-!"

"…What are you doing?" Seto asked in confusion, but the blond could see the comprehension dawning in his eyes. "I thought you wanted to stay with me. Isn't that what… isn't that what it meant? Did it mean nothing to you?"

Yami and Bakura looked confused, too. "Aibou? What are you…? Don't you want Seto and Katsuya together?"

"Why are you taking him away? Seto's been so happy…"

Yuugi burst into tears, Katsuya began to whimper, and Ryou lost it. Turning to the blond quickly, he grabbed his shoulders and shook him slightly. "Get to Anzu. That's all you have to do! Just _get_ to _Anzu!_"

At that, both the March Hare and Cheshire Cat let out growls of anger that their chosen partners would hurt their friend and charged forward. Yuugi and Ryou met them claw for claw, fist for fist, screeching, hissing, clawing balls of fury and anger from both sides.

Katsuya looked up at the brunet one last time. "I'm sorry, Seto."

"Sorry-? You're fucking _sorry?_ You think you're leaving without giving me a proper explanation, Katsuya?" Seto snapped, taking a threatening step toward him as his face contorted in anger. "You are _so_ mistaken in thinking so, love!"

The blond whimpered again, then turned and ran, knowing full well that if the king decided to catch a ride on Kisara, he was in for a world of hurt; not just the spanking he was sure this would earn, since he figured Seto would enjoy that, but also the emotional torment he'd have to go through trying to explain to him, and also the feelings of the outcome of his confession—whether Seto forced him to stay or let him go.

So he ran and he didn't look back for anything, even when he heard the king calling for someone to go after him and to get Kisara—he knew he was going to hurt for this. But getting back to Anzu's door proved to be easier than getting away from it, and he realized that he must have been wandering in _circles_ for hours until Yuugi took pity on him.

Running to the door, Katsuya was confused to find Anzu facing him, when he was sure that she'd left her on the other side. But never mind that; he could hear the creatures and people chasing him growing closer with every panting gasp he took. He leaned against the door with shaky legs and looked up at her surprised face desperately.

"Anzu-! I need to get to the other side of the door! Please tell me you can do that trick on short notice!"

The door latch looked at him in surprise, frowning. "What? Why?" She glanced up and noticed the search party coming toward them. "Oh jeez! I can't work that fast!"

Katsuya sobbed and leaned his head against the door. "Anzu, _please!_"

"But Katsuya-!" Anzu looked frustrated. "You're _already_ on the other side! You've just got to wake up!"

"Huh?" The blond looked up at her in confusion, then peeked through her keyhole—no matter how awkward he felt doing so. And he was on the other side of the door; he could see his peacefully sleeping form on the grass in the sun, still wearing his jeans and t-shirt—not looking as heartbroken and frightened as he felt.

"Well? Are you going to wake yourself up or what?" the door latch exclaimed impatiently. "Hurry up!"

Katsuya looked up at her, then began banging on the door desperately. "Katsuya! Wake up, Katsuya!"

"They're getting _closer,_" Anzu noted worriedly.

"Katsuya! Katsuya-!"

She sighed dejectedly. "Oh, crap, we're gonna die."

The blond scowled, then growled and banged on the door with new energy. "JOUNOUCHI KATSUYA, WAKE _UP!_"

And he was jerking awake on the other side of the door, a sucking sensation pulling him through the small keyhole back to his body.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Seto gasped and jerked awake, disoriented. But, when he finally realized he was at home and in his bed, he frowned in disappointment and turned onto his side to face the wall. It was always after these dreams that he felt the worst. He should really stop taking cat naps in the middle of the day. It just wasn't worth the constant pain.


	7. Back In Pieces

**Katsuya's Adventures in Wonderland**

_**Back In Pieces**_

Jounouchi rubbed his eyes tiredly and opened the door to the game shop. "Hey, sorry I'm late. Just had to take some time to my— Why the hell is Yuugi crying?" All of the pain and anguish he'd felt suddenly melted away in place of anger as he found his best friend crying into Ryou's shoulder like his heart had been broken—and even Bakura looked like he pitied 'the Pharaoh's midget.' "What the hell is goin' on?"

Ryou sighed and patted the smaller boy on the back as he began to cry harder. "You know how Yuugi's had that humongous crush on Yami for the longest time?" When the blond nodded, he looked up at him sadly. "Kaiba came over earlier and challenged Yami to a duel. You know how we've _all_ gotten tired of them dueling all the time, so Yuugi left to help his grandfather in the store, but… but when he went back, he found that Kaiba and Yami had their hands down each others' pants."

Jounouchi could feel his heart break to little bitty pieces, and he knew only half of it was for Yuugi. He felt so… betrayed. The Seto in his dreams was… and this one had…

But soon that pain and betrayal was turned to burning hot anger. He knew that the hurt he felt would probably _never_ go away, but how _dare_ Yami—how _dare_ he—hurt Yuugi? Yuugi had done _everything_ for him, even after he'd returned to the afterlife and had somehow managed to come back—hadn't asked how, or why, just let him into his home—so why would Yami do something that would obviously hurt his supposed 'aibou?'

Grabbing Bakura's shirt by the collar, he growled angrily. "Where are they?"

The former thief winced, eyes growing wide, before he hurriedly pointed to the door again. "They left a few minutes ago and they haven't come back!" The blond snarled, then turned and stormed out the door. Once sure he was gone, Bakura sighed in relief. "Oh, Ra, I thought he was gonna kill me."

Yuugi peeked over his friend's shoulder, sniffling. "D-do you think it worked?"

"One can only hope," Ryou murmured, then sighed and stood up, despite the whimper the smaller boy gave. "Let's start baking. Because either he's going to be heartbroken and is going to need comfort food, or he's going to be very, _very_ mad at us and we'll need every gift we can get to try and earn forgiveness."

Bakura scowled and crossed his arms as he looked away. He knew he wasn't allowed to help them; he was only allowed to watch. However, when Yuugi continued to try and pull himself together, he sighed and handed him the tissue box beside him. "Here."

The smaller boy managed a small smile for him. "Thanks, Bakura."

"Yeah, just… don't tell your Pharaoh. Don't need him teasing me, after all."

.-.-.-.-.-.

Jounouchi wouldn't have wasted his time or effort on him. Seeing as Yami and Seto hadn't been in the direction to come from, he only had one direction left to go, and he was on a mission now. A mission to hurt and punish.

When he did finally come upon them at a café, Seto drinking a cup of coffee and Yami idly poking at a brownie, he came up behind the former pharaoh silently, nearly trembling with rage. Seto glanced up at him, then looked away again, only to look back at him sharply. Then, he hurriedly shoved away from the table, still holding his cup of coffee.

Jounouchi snarled loudly as he reached around to grab the front of Yami's shirt, ripping him around to face him, then slammed him down so he was lying on the table. As the former spirit looked up at him in surprise, he curled his upper lip back to sneer at him. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't rip your nonexistent heart out!"

"…What are you talking about-?"

"DON'T PLAY STUPID WITH ME BECAUSE I'M BETTER AT IT!" the blond roared, lifting him up slightly before slamming him back down. "You know what I'm talking about, you bastard! You hurt _Yuugi!_ Are you seriously that _blind?_ Even _I_ could see how much he likes you, and I'm a moron! What is _wrong with you?_"

Yami frowned. "Um, Jounouchi-kun—"

"_DON'T CALL ME THAT!_" Jounouchi raised his fist to punch him, eyes nearly glowing with anger. However, before he could land the blow, he was grabbed by the offending wrist, spun around, and kicked in the small of his back away so he fell to the ground in a pathetic heap. Confused, he turned, brows furrowing together in confusion.

He felt his heart break to little pieces all over again. Seto glared at him for a few more seconds before turning to offer Yami his hand, which the other man took. All without even spilling a drop of his coffee. He was nothing to Kaiba—absolutely nothing.

Once making sure that Yami was okay, the brunet turned his glare back on the younger boy. "Listen, _mutt,_ I don't care how angry you are. Just because Yuugi can't handle the _thought_ of Yami being with someone else doesn't mean he can control who he has sex with. Besides, what would _you_ know about it? You just follow your master around like the stupid little _dog_ that you are."

At that, Jounouchi flinched, then ducked his head like a scolded puppy. It hurt. It hurt _so_ badly. He just… he just wanted to _die._ Standing up, he sniffled and rubbed his nose, trying desperately to keep from crying in front of them, disallowing either of them to see him weak. The only thing that gave away how hurt he actually felt was the softness of his voice.

Looking up at them through his hair as tears welled up in his eyes, he sighed shakily, then nodded once. "Fine. S-see if I care." He cursed in his head for stuttering and bit his bottom lip, then decided to continue, just a little louder, so they'd be able to tell he was still angry. "Yami, you better not come back to the shop for a while—a good, _long_ while, because I'm not going to let Yuugi cry over _you._" He narrowed his eyes, mindless of the tears that rolled down his cheeks as he did so. "And if you come, so help me, I'll rip your God damned ears out." He turned his glare on Seto, feeling as if someone was stomping on the already tiny pieces of his heart. "And _you._ I hope… I hope you get EATEN BY AKAI!" he added angrily, before turning to stomp away.

Seto tilted his head, stunned. Akai? And ripping Yami's ears out? Was the mutt really talking about—

Jounouchi threw a hand up in frustration as he continued, though he spoke more to himself than either Kaiba or Yami this time. "Or Kisara, for all I care! One of them's going to be pissed with you, that's for sure! Just take all your stupid rosebushes and _choke_ on them!"

However, once he was far enough away from the others, he sobbed, and began to run back to the game shop. Yuugi wasn't the only one needing a hug right now.

Seto watched him go, still stunned. Had Jounouchi just mentioned things from the dreams he'd been having? From the dragons, to ripping Yami's ears out, to the rosebushes-? He remembered the look that Katsuya had given him before he ran out of the castle—the agony, the regret, the pain—and he realized that… that had been the same look in his eyes when he'd looked up at him. His heart had been breaking even as he spoke.

And it had been entirely his fault; he'd probably only made the wound worse by saying all of those cruel, harsh things to him.

…This was no coincidence.

"…Yami. What did you do?"

The former Pharaoh at least had the grace to look down at his feet and rub the back of his head. "Well… it wasn't really my idea."

Seto turned toward him angrily. "I don't _care_ if it wasn't your idea! Tell me what you did!"

Yami sighed, then crossed his arms and looked up at him, scowling. "Yuugi and I started our relationship two months ago and have successfully hidden it from Jounouchi. We tend to couple off when we go out, and he believed that since Yuugi and I were not together, he could stick with us while the others went off on their own. Yuugi and I want to come out to him; he is our best friend. But then he'd feel obligated to let us pair off and go off on our own, leaving him by himself. Jounouchi doesn't do well by himself. Therefore, we cannot do that until he has his own lover."

The brunet scowled; he had a feeling he knew where this was headed. "And just what does that have to do with me?"

"Okay, Kaiba, just because we're oblivious doesn't mean we're blind!" Yami exclaimed, glaring at him. "Whenever you and Jounouchi fight, all you two look like you want to do is fuck each other like bunnies! We figured that since you're starting to hang out with us more, you could be the one Jounouchi pairs off with!"

Seto rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "Because I'm _totally_ the lover he needs."

"And just what makes you think you aren't?" The smaller man scowled. "You're exactly what he needs. As much as he fights it, he knows he's got the mindset of a dog—he needs someone to care for him and keep him. He needs someone that will tell him what they want because he's so afraid to guess. He needs someone that will show him that even if he may have the mindset of a dog, he's still special. What's wrong with dogs, Kaiba? Do you think Jounouchi would _slobber_ all over you? Infest the house with fleas? You're not that cruel."

"I'm exactly what he _doesn't_ need!" the brunet snapped, turning away from him as he turned a glare on his feet. "He doesn't need someone spitting insults at him or forcing him to do things he doesn't want to do. I'm the _last_ thing he needs."

Yami rolled his eyes in frustration. "Why don't you treat him like you did in your dream?"

"If I just went up to him and decided to treat him like a lover instead of a rival—how do you think he'd—" The teen paused, then turned a glare on the other man. "How did you know about my dream?"

Again, he at least had the good grace to look a little embarrassed. "…I… may have some reason to do with why you keep having it." Another glare had him flinching a little. "…And I may have some reason to do with why Jounouchi was there this last time."

"Are you saying that-! That Katsuya was-! And Jounouchi remembers-!" the brunet sputtered, horrified, before he groaned and covered his face. "Oh, God, my puppy must hate me now!" He sighed, then frowned and uncovered his face, looking over at the former pharaoh in confusion. "Wait, so if you want me with Jounouchi, why did you agree to the little tryst we had?"

"You're not unattractive and I asked Yuugi first," Yami replied, placing his hands on his hips. "We both figured I might as well see if you could keep Jounouchi satisfied."

"…I hope you found I would, or so help me, I'll wring your _neck,_" Seto hissed, glaring at him again, before sighing and sitting down in the nearest chair. He glared at a few people giving them odd looks—they _had_ just had a violent and awkward confrontation—sending their attentions elsewhere, then sighed and leaned his chin on his hands, placing his elbows on the table. "So if I'm supposed to become his lover, how can I do that now? I made him wish a dragon would eat me."

The former spirit smiled brightly. "I seem to remember that Katsuya likes _roses._"

The CEO sighed and rubbed his eyes tiredly; he felt a headache forming behind them. "I don't think all of the roses in the world could make him forgive me now."

"That's alright, Kaiba." Yami patted him on the shoulder before turning to leave—he'd stay in his soul room until Jounouchi calmed down. "I'm sure you'll think of something. You _are_ a genius after all."

Seto sighed again and watched him disappear, wondering vaguely if he should tell Yami about the brownie plastered to the back of his shirt. Deciding against it, he stood, leaving money on the table for both food and drink before he turned to go home. If he ever hoped to earn Jounouchi's forgiveness, he'd need a plan—and a damn good one.

.-.-.-.-.-.

Jounouchi sniffled and wiped his face, then took a few deep breaths. He didn't want his friends to see him so messed up. After getting relatively calm, he sighed and stepped into the shop. "Yuug'? 'm back."

"They're in the kitchen. …Baking," Bakura answered, spitting the last word out like it left a horrible taste in his mouth.

The blond couldn't help a small smile at that; he knew that Bakura burned just about anything in a kitchen—including the ice. So he merely nodded and went through to the kitchen. When he got inside, he was accosted by cupcakes. "Bwah-!"

"Eat these!" Ryou demanded, scowling. "You look just as bad as Yuugi! Honestly, how am I supposed to enjoy being with Bakura if I know you two are all alone!"

Jounouchi sniffed again and frowned, holding the platter of cupcakes in confusion. "But… Ryou—"

"EAT THEM!" the albino ordered again, glaring at him. "Or I will shove them all down your _throat._"

The taller teen blinked, then hurriedly stuffed a cupcake in his mouth. When the smaller boy turned away, satisfied, he set the platter down and frowned. "Fwaht ah we foo-in?" he asked around the cupcake, spewing crumbs.

Yuugi smiled weakly. "We're baking so we can feel better."

"…Hey! I could make Kuriboh-shaped cookies and we could sell them in the shop!" the blond exclaimed, clasping his hands together. "Use chocolate frosting for fur and vanilla frosting mixed with yellow food coloring for little eyes—and chocolate chips for pupils!"

Ryou smiled and placed his hands on his hips. "What about their little paws, Jounouchi?"

"We can use those green dinner mints!" Jounouchi replied, relieved that he could get his mind on something other than how badly he was hurting. "How fun would that be for the kids?"

Yuugi's smile grew a little. "I think even Bakura could help with the frosting. There's no fire involved with frosting cookies."

As if he'd been called, Bakura wandered into the room, whining, "Hikari, I'm _bored._ The old man won't let me help with the midgets—" Yuugi coughed quietly. "…He won't let me help with the _children._ And you said I'm not allowed to play with knives inside the shop anymore, so I've got nothing to _do._"

The smaller albino frowned, narrowing his eyes at the taller boy, then nodded slowly. "You can frost some cupcakes. Then, when we're finished with the first batch of cookies, you can watch how we frost them and keep frosting them for us as we continue to make cookies."

The former spirit scowled and opened his mouth to complain that he wasn't an absolute _girl,_ but Yuugi cut him off by adding, "I'll even let you have a quarter of the profits!"

"Deal!" Bakura exclaimed, grabbing the icing bag to begin putting the frosting on the cupcakes.

Ryou frowned and turned to the other boy in confusion. "Yuugi…"

The smaller boy rolled his eyes and, leaning forward, whispered, "I'm selling them for twenty cents, Ryou. We each get a nickel. Whoop-dee-doo."

"Oooh. …Clever."

"Let's start making some sugar cookies," Jounouchi suggested, tossing his jacket off and reaching for an apron. "Really? This girly one is the only one left?"

"But Jounouchi, you look so _good_ in pink!" Yuugi exclaimed, smiling brightly.

Bakura snorted. "Yeah, like that one time, when Anzu got you into that dress by saying she needed to see how far down the skirt would go to if she got it for Mai—"

The blond blushed and glared at them. "You swore you wouldn't talk about that ever again!"

"…I lied."

.-.-.-.-.-.

Seto sighed and looked down at the single orange rose in his hand, shoving his other hand in his pocket. It had taken a while, but he'd finally figured out how he might be able to win his way back to Jounouchi—Katsuya's—heart. He just… had to hope that maybe the blond would forgive him and allow him a second chance.

Stepping into the Kame Game Shop, he looked around, confused by all of the younger children; usually, the normal age group in the game shop would be middle school-aged children interested in Duel Monsters or other various games. Rarely did mothers ever come in with their smaller children, instead choosing to wait outside so their older siblings couldn't drag them into the addicting world of Duel Monsters. But now… mothers, and all of their younger children were partaking in the joys of Duel Monsters? Really?

Making his way to the counter, he realized that no, they were not, but had to smile a little just the same as a little girl pointed at a white-frosted chocolate cupcake dusted with sprinkles. It was a gorgeous cupcake. Twenty-five cents each. And, beside them, was a platter of the cutest Kuriboh cookies ever, for twenty cents each. He understood now.

Looking up at the old man standing cheerfully behind the counter, he wondered if he'd heard about him and Yami, and whether or not he was in on it or not. But then he saw the ever cheerful Yuugi smiling brightly and taking the offered amounts of change from various mothers, handing them whatever sweet they'd pay for. He'd be taking a really big chance here.

Seto heisted before clearing his throat and leaning down so he wouldn't have to talk too loudly. "Yuugi?"

The younger boy looked up at him in surprise, then there was a look of pain, then another of hope. "Kaiba-kun! Are you here to see Jounouchi?"

"…Yes," he answered softly. "May I see him?"

Yuugi glanced around suspiciously, then leaned forward to whisper, "You better be ready to do some groveling, Kaiba-kun. He is _really _hurt."

The brunet winced, then nodded his agreement. "I know."

"Through that door," the smaller teen directed, pointing to a door leading to the back. "That's the kitchen. …Try not to drool in there."

The older boy smiled wryly and stood up straight. "I don't like sweets very much, Yuugi. I have to be in the mood, and… right now, I'm just not."

Yuugi rolled his eyes as the brunet strolled past him, mumbling, "I wasn't talking about the sweets."

Seto stepped into the kitchen, looking for a flash of blond hair, but his eyes were immediately caught by the pink… frilly… apron… BUT HE WAS HERE FOR JOUNOUCHI so he lifted his gaze to the blond.

Jounouchi turned to put an empty cookie sheet in the sink and squealed as his eyes landed on a pair of blue ones, dropping it in shock. "Kaiba-!" He looked down at the cookie sheet for a few seconds, not knowing where else to look, before hurriedly reaching to take off the apron he was wearing, fingers fumbling with the ties. "W-w-what the hell are you—"

"No," the brunet cut in quickly, reaching out to cover the smaller boy's hands with his free one. "…I like that on you. Makes you look… sweet."

Jounouchi blushed and looked up at him, then hurriedly looked away again, hesitantly pulling his hands away to clasp behind his back. "I'm… please go away. I'm just trying to get away from everything right now. C-could you just come back to insult me later? 'C-cause I don't—"

"You look beautiful like this." Seto smiled sweetly, then looked down at the rose he was holding. After a few seconds of thought, he looked back at the blond and went down on one knee, holding up the rose like one would an engagement ring. "Katsuya, I'd like another chance."

The younger teen gasped softly and took a step back, eyes widening as they landed on the sundowner rose being held out to him. "K-K-Kaiba…"

Could it really be? Was this the Wonderland Seto? Was he hallucinating? Was he just dreaming again? Was it wishful thinking?

Reaching out hesitantly, Jounouchi took the stem of the rose between trembling fingers. When he felt the waxy stem, the soft petals, he gasped again, eyes filling with tears. This was real. This was _real._ His heart was slowly piecing itself back together. Smiling weakly as he let out a sob, he traced the edges of the petals with his finger tip.

But then he remembered why he'd been angry in the first place, and he felt the just-repaired pieces of his heart shatter as he threw the rose back in the brunet's face.

"What! Did Yami decide he didn't want to be your _fuck buddy_ anymore! Do you think I'll be a good one-nighter? Think I'll be a good fuck-!" He sobbed again and turned to run out the back door. "I can't do this again!"

Seto stayed only long enough to grab the fallen rose before followed him. "Jounouchi, wait!"

The younger boy stumbled out into the alley behind the game shop and hit the wall of the shop next door, then turned to run to the street, only to have the back of his shirt grabbed and yanked on. "Ah-!"

"Let me explain-!" the brunet exclaimed, tugging the smaller teen back into his arms.

Jounouchi began struggling weakly, tugging and pushing at the arm wrapped around his waist. "No, don't _do_ this to me! I can't _do_ this again—you keep hurting me! I don't want to keep hurting like this! I just want to get it to go away!" He stilled in confusion as he felt the petals of the rose brushing his lips.

Seto grazed the blond's lips with the rose again, then nuzzled his ear gently. "Please let me explain."

"…No. You'll just say something that'll hurt me again—" the smaller boy began, moving to struggle anew, only to find himself being spun around and swept into a swift kiss. "Mmn…!"

The brunet slid a hand beneath his shirt and dug his fingers slightly into the warm, firm flesh, remembering just how much he loved feeling it that one time, when the younger boy had given him his most special part. When the blond only whimpered and squirmed a little, he broke the kiss and leaned back to offer him the rose one last time. "Jounouchi. Please. Just one more chance. Let me explain."

Jounouchi looked up at him with wet eyes, looking so much like he might break if just one thing went wrong. "…I…" He bit his bottom lip to keep it from trembling, then reached out to hesitantly grasp the rose. After a few more moments, he nodded. "Okay."

Seto smiled sweetly. "Thank you." He hesitated before taking the blond's free hand in his own. "Jounouchi… Katsuya… You're going to be hurt by what I'm going to say. I know you are."

"…How could it hurt any worse?" the smaller teen asked softly, voice cracking a little. "You really hurt me—"

"It was all a plot. Your friends came up with it." The brunet frowned and cupped the other boy's cheeks when his eyes widened. "No, listen. They did it for your own good. They didn't do it to hurt you. Don't get upset yet; don't get upset until I've told you everything. Got it?"

Jounouchi whimpered softly but nodded. "Y-yeah."

"Good." The older teen hesitated before softly adding, "And please don't judge me until I'm finished, okay?" When he got another nod, he sighed. "Yami and Yuugi are a romantically involved couple. No, don't give me that look—Yami told me himself. They didn't want to tell you because they pair off, and you'd doubtlessly feel awkward being a third wheel. Is that not true?"

The blond paused before nodding again. "Yes."

"They don't want you alone, so they tried to find a suitable partner for you. I've…" The brunet blushed and looked away for a moment. "I've been having dreams for a while now. They always feature you, and I'm always trying to win your affections. Yami said that he's the reason behind them. He… also said that he'd brought you into the last dream. I didn't know… I didn't know until after I yelled at you." He kept his eyes downward in shame and regret. "Had I known it was really you… that I might actually have a chance… I've hurt you, Jounouchi, very badly. I'd like a chance, but… but I understand if you don't want me as your boyfriend."

Jounouchi looked down, brows furrowing together as tears began to gather in his eyes again. "That still doesn't explain why you and Yami had your hands down each others' pants. And… and why the others would go along with it."

Seto sighed softly. "…Yami says he got permission from Yuugi. Apparently they wanted to make sure I'd be able to satisfy you." He smiled a little when the blond snorted and pulled him closer. "The others went along with it because… because they think you don't handle being alone very well. They didn't think it would be fair _or_ safe to leave you alone for long."

"That still doesn't… _why would they hurt me?_" he whispered, then leaned forward so he could rest his head on the brunet's chest, sobbing.

The older boy held him tightly, carefully stroking his hair, before dipping his head so his lips were next to the other boy's ear. "Katsuya? Let's go back to my home. You can rest there. You don't have to do anything, just… rest. And we'll talk with your friends later."

The blond felt that he was about to fall asleep, and he really didn't want to, but he felt exhausted. Looking up tiredly, the younger boy whimpered softly. "Kiss me, please? Just one last time-!"

Seto smiled, then leaned down to press their mouths together in a sweet kiss. He kept kissing until he felt the blond's lips go slack against his. Leaning back, he couldn't help a larger smile at seeing the younger teen asleep in his arms, looking _so_ beautiful.

Jounouchi's lips had curled into a sweet smile, his face relaxed like it hadn't been all day. There were sparkling trails of tears down his cheeks, making him look heartbreakingly gorgeous. His damp eyelashes fanned down over his cheeks gently. He was lucky he was asleep, or he would have been getting up close and _very_ personal with his new boyfriend.

They could deal with the blond's friends tomorrow. There wasn't much to do, anyway; Jounouchi may have been hurt, but he would always forgive his friends. Now, all Seto had to do was make sure he didn't screw this relationship up.

The End

"NOOOOOOOO IT CAN'T BE THE END!" That's what you guys are thinking (or actually screaming) right now, isn't it?

Yes, it can. And it is. For serious. I know, I lied in the last chapter and said two maybe three chapters, but I've decided that this is a really good place to end this story; you guys can fill in the end by yourselves. Did it work out? Did it fall apart? Did Seto ever screw up? That's up to _you_ and your _imagination._

I have, however, decided to write a lemon as an extra chapter that is unrelated to this current timeline—further down the road.

It's available on adultfanfiction . net.


End file.
